Mr. Todd Henry

The senseless killing of Mr. Todd Henry at John Tyler High School on Wednesday has stirred up a frenzy of emotion in our town. Some want to make it into a racist issue; others say gangs were involved. People blame the "system" or lack of security at the school.

The truth is, people, that a very sick young man committed a very violent act, inside a classroom with 2 teachers and 3 students. We should not be so quick to assume what kind of person would do such a thing, or to guess what circumstances must have brought on such violence. It's sad. It's senseless. It's sick.

I realized late last night that I did know Mr. Henry. His picture had looked familiar to me all day, but it wasn't until the term "music therapy" came up that I put all the pieces together. I met him several years ago at St. Louis school for special education students, when I was a substitute teacher out there. He and I had a discussion about what he did, and I found him to be an intelligent, caring and talented man. He appeared to really enjoy doing music with those kids, kids who tend to get forgotten, kids other people are afraid of because they might be hooked up to tubes, or they might be 5' tall but have to crawl on the floor, kids who drool and poop and bite and pinch and can't talk and can't clap for you or smile and make you feel good about your talents as a musician. He must have been there for the truest definition of the word altruism.

I think this situation is not so much about what happened yesterday but about how our community reacted to it, and what issues were brought to light and we can clearly see that Tyler is still absorbed with racial tension, economic dispersity and all kinds of other judgements that point to one thing: people do not know people for who they are. People are still judging each other for the way they look or the possessions they have or the clothes they wear. I'd like to see my town free of gangs and violence, but situations like this highlight the deep-seeded issues that are foundationally here.

What bothers me most about all this? In the midst of all this... my roommate is at the high school today, counseling. I will most likely have to field lots of questions from my own students. Kids are curious, about life in general. And as Erin and I try to comfort and reassure and counsel these teenagers, we are legally bound from telling them The Good News. It is the most stifling feeling... I feel already as if a plastic bag is in my mouth.

You know me. You know that I tend to work it in, somehow. :) But it is the law, and it is how it is. These kids are starving for God's love and I am overflowing with it. So I will pour it out, with action and with emotion, but not with words.... that's my loophole.