The entire western half of the neighborhood must have heard the cry of anguish, "Why did they do it?" The six-year-old in a pirate suit had just returned with a large haul of sugary booty from a harvest festival at a local church. Everyone had been generous, kind, and patient at the festival, and now he had come home to find his and his sister's carved jack-o-lanterns cast down and crushed by the front door. His cyclopean beast was cracked in half and upside down. His parent's explanations that people are sometimes simply cruel left him befuddled and as crushed as his creation. A misguided offer by one parent to keep them inside next year was met with the boy's exasperated but wise, "But then no one will see it. Maybe we can put them in something to keep them safe. We can use superglue."
An offer of some candy distracted him temporarily from the tragedy, but the lesson will be there. The world is cruel, and it is safer inside. One can only hope that despite this incident, he will always remain brave enough to offer his work where others might see it.
Peace
..._
