Today was a normal day.

I got to school at 7 am where I ran the Ultimate Frisbee conditioning practice for 45 or so players across the three teams we have. It’s my favorite time in the day – when I just get to be Coach Lehmann with the kids.

Then there were some meetings with teachers, talks with students, watching some classes and answering the never-ending emails. I had to go to the central office to look at some new technology that the district is piloting, and then it was back to school for parent conferences and the chance to talk about the amazing things I see SLA kids do every day with their parents.

The end of the school day ended with some fun – there was spontaneous singing in the Main Office with some students and teachers, and I never pass up the chance to sing. Then it was off to a teacher recruitment fair before finally heading home.

It was an almost completely normal day.

Almost.

Because all of us — teachers, students, parents – looked at each other and thought some version of “There but for the grace of God go I.”

In conversations in the halls and in the classrooms, we asked ourselves when this country will do take action to stop all these school shootings.

Parents talked about how they need schools to be safe spaces. We talked about all the ways we create community at SLA and how that keeps us safe. And we talked about the times we’ve felt that community be tested and how that scares us.

We talked about how hard it is getting to keep the cruelty of our world outside of our walls.

We talked about yet another mass school shooting.

And it was a completely normal day.

And that’s not ok.