After hearing the horrific news of the Boston Marathon explosions, we are left with questions of “Why?” and “How can I explain this to my children?” There were over three hundred runners from Georgia who participated in the Boston Marathon today. Since we will know many of these runners who work with us, their children go to the same schools as our kids, and we pass by these runners on our commute to-and-from our offices, we are bound to have questions that can help us process this tragedy.

It is important to remember children process and understand events very differently based on their developmental age and certainly much differently than adults do. This is the reason you are selective in the movies or songs you allow your children to watch or listen to. You offer them the reality of our world in small pieces so they can better process and understand it based on their age.

The information and details of the Boston Marathon explosions can be thought of in the same way. The details of what happened at the Boston Marathon would be rated R if it were a movie and are extremely overwhelming to a child, teenagers, and even adults. Make sure you are turning off the TV and connecting with the loved ones around you or spending some time outside.

As athletes and runners, we know how supportive, encouraging, and resilient every runner is of their peers. From the runner who is just beginning, to those runners who ran today, we know that we have a great community of support for our peers during times of success and times of tragedy. We, at GROW, want you to know that we are here for you in your time of need.