Innocence is taken from us every day. To think of the heinous crimes that children and families experience in this world is not a mental or emotional place I like to hang out in, at all. Ask my husband, after many being a Boston Photographer for all the local newspapers, I had to ask him to turn off the news radio stations and talk about local horrors was prohibited in my home. He left that world, or at least for most of the time.

We still document stories in impoverished areas of the world, and because we do it with NGOs and other non profit groups, we feel that the stories we tell do make a difference for awareness.

Today, I am guided to talk about a different kind of awareness…. how we steal innocence.

I have led a very, very charmed life. I always joke that I must have a legions of angels, especially in my twenties. But, I won’t bore you with my typical days looking for love and a place to belong. The truth is NOTHING bad every happened to me. Ever. I always made it home safe and sound, and no one ever took advantage of me, until last week.

I felt so violated. Disgusted. And honestly, my 4 year old was in the car, so I could not react. I couldn’t believe this man said this to me, and did he know my daughter was in the car? He even had a pretty pink Britax car seat on the back of his car. Yet, he chose to look at me in the eyes, tell me how pretty I was, and then ended with an inappropriate remark of what he was going to do with the image of my face.

Half of my brain got half of his license plate, and the other half was in utter shock. Violated. Shocked. And then combine this with trying to explain to my little one who was asking, “What did he say??”

Innocence was stolen. I’ve been thinking about how in different ways, we do this to each other, to our children. Every time we exert power over anyone, we take from their innocence and trust in humanity and God. Every time we broke up with someone in an unjust way, innocence is stolen. Every time we blow someone off, innocence is stolen. Every time we lie, innocence is stolen.

Many of you know that I am an optimist, I believe in the unseen, and I believe in the power of human-kind to raise above lower vibrations. I choose to reclaim my innocence, and I choose to have compassion for that man. He was trying to make himself happy at the expense of innocence. What did Jesus say, “forgive them for they know not what they do”. He doesn’t know.  I don’t condone it, and I don’t ever want to see him again! And I have a choice. I have two little girls who I protect every day.

I can go into fear and forbid everything at the park, or I can call upon my care-free ways and still teach them to use their intuition. Maybe mine failed me for a split second as I rolled down my window to see what this man wanted to say to me, but this is not permanent. It was one moment. I choose to teach my children discernment, yes, but to always expect the very best of humanity. I know I don’t want to live a guarded life. My heart is open and to have a guarded life would just feel like I am half living. I don’t want to teach that.

I’m sure this is not easy for many to read. I am totally sensitive to that. I know I have not suffered as some have. I completely honor that.

I am not writing this from a place of having any entitlement in the subject but only because I want my daughters to live a full life, and to encourage their innocence to continue to live, maybe even in grander ways than I have.

Innocence is reclaimed. Sigh.