Gruesome Fairy Tales

Gruesome Fairy Tales of Lore… Reality for Today’s Children… i.e. Paris Attacks That talk… the one you have with your wide-eyed toddler about strangers. The one that dilutes all efforts to build trust, security, confidence, comfort. Staring down innocence, you apologize for the world we live in.
“I’m sorry… there are bad people in the world.”
You issue the warnings regarding strangers: don’t talk to them… don’t accept candy, money or anything… don’t get into their car… and so on… Translation: Do not trust, feel safe, rest, or be at peace. As a child of the sixties, I read gruesome fairy tales with horrendous evil doings on every page. Trust me, you don’t want to know what really happened to Sleeping Beauty or Hansel and Gretel. Or
Those horrors were a fantasy. Today’s mayhem is real. The boogie man is no longer hiding under the bed or in the closet. He is out in the open. That breaks my heart. No parent should have to tell their child… “I’m sorry dear, the boogie man exists.” But in today’s world, we must. Below is the transcript of the video that’s gone viral of a father's explanation to his preschool son, Brandon, about the Paris attacks. It shows an interview conducted Sunday by a reporter for France's Le Petit Journal at Place de La Republique in Paris, where people are laying flowers and lighting candles to honor the 129 victims killed in the attacks. It begins with Brandon telling reporter Martin Weill that the attacks were by "bad guys" who were "not very nice." He then expresses fear that his family will be forced to move, although his father, Angel Le, reassures him.
"Oh, don't worry. We don't need to move out. France is our home," the father tells his son.
Brandon offers a quick
"It's to protect?" Brandon asks.
"Exactly."
"And the candles too?"
"It's to remember the people who are gone yesterday." These are the talks parents are having with children around the world in the aftermath of evil. Talks given while holding tiny hands… ending with hugs and “I’m sorry,” as adults hide fear, sorrow and tears. Words of comfort given simultaneously alongside worries and thoughts... warnings from the CIA Director, of Washington D.C. threats. Reassurances along side imaginings of what might happen next. How do we live like this? How do we have those talks with our children? Without faith, without knowing our Lord and Saviour, without belief that He is victorious, what hope do we have in a world where evil dwells? How would we see His light shining in others? Or believe that Love wins every battle, every time? To our children and grandchildren… I’m sorry the boogey man is real. He’s not in your closet, under the bed, or a fantasy in a Grimm’s Fairy Tale. He is not hiding. He’s out of the closet. The good news is this: John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal