Fireflies
1/17/23
Although the News Gives Us Reasons for Despair
We Remember Gabby’s Story:
Gabby’s Story
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Shot in the head. Gabrielle Giffords, then member of Congress, was speaking to voters in downtown Tucson in 2011, when anti-government, anti-feminist, gun advocate and conspiracy theorist, Jared Lee Loughner walked through the crowd, many of whom also came armed, pulled a Glock-19 semi-automatic pistol, and shot Gabby at close range. Yet she not die. Gabby fought to breath, to live. Her aide saved her life with timely first aid. As did the EMT crew, the hospital, the specialty clinic in Texas. Yet it was Gabby alone who decided to live. She managed to work through the pain and struggle of rehabilitation, slowly re-learning to do even the most basic tasks like speaking and walking. The brain injuries left by the bullet occurred on the left side, including motor and speech areas. Somehow Gabby drew upon on early training in music and storytelling to draw herself along, using her brain’s right side to do what the left side used to do, to learn new ways to speak and to move. Singing, verse, and playing the French Horn held forth against the madness that had caused her injuries. Cadence, rhyme, melody proved to be stronger for her than the hate-blinded forces of evil. Gabby Giffords, and her husband Mark — now representing Arizona in the US Senate — now lead the nationwide fight against gun violence
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Amidst narratives of despair, we must refocus on the small points of light all around. I’m a former trauma therapist and on-scene disaster consultant, a teacher, a painter, and now a writer. Last year I found hope in gathering stories of individuals persevering against all odds to overcome despair. Fireflies Against Darkness was my first collection of such stories, and More Fireflies, just released, the second. As current events become the spectacle of darkness for another year, I find myself working on s third collection. I want to share them with you.
Adapted from:
Fireflies Against Darkness
Arroyo Seco Press
