Children and Guns: A Really Bad Idea

It happened again—a 13-year-old boy shot his 6-year-old sister in the chest. Children are routinely shooting other children. As a spiritual teacher and health & wellness expert, I have deep compassion for both the parents and kids in these traumatic situations, but I’m horrified at the number of guns that manage to find their way into the hands of children.

It is estimated that the 80 million gun owners in the U.S. have over 300 million privately owned firearms, making America the number one ranking country in gun ownership. In contrast, law enforcement and the military own 4 million guns. How’s that for a startling statistic? Private gun owners outgun the authorities by about 79 to 1. With that many guns around, and the fact that many of these guns are not kept locked away, it’s no wonder that children have access to these deadly weapons.

Think of what happens to a child who is playing with his parent’s gun and winds up shooting a sibling, a playmate, or an adult. Think of the shock and upheaval, the pain and anguish, and the pure heartbreak all around. Think of what it will take from a life coach or an energy healing practitioner to release that nightmare.