Chronicle

A Tale of Two Neighborhoods is the title of one of the stories that was featured this past Wednesday June 29th on WCVB, Channel 5 (ABC) Chronicle. The program addressed the wide disparity in life expectancy between two Boston neighborhoods and why it is if you live in the Back Bay you might expect to live into your 90’s, but just a short distance away in Roxbury, you’ll lucky to make it into your late 50’s. This, despite the fact that Boston houses some of the best hospitals in the country.

The segment outlined the premise that all moms, whether they live in Back Bay, Roxbury or anywhere want the same thing, for our babies to be healthy, and grow up to be happy, productive members of society. A few weeks ago, team Chronicle came to visit one of the Parent Connection new moms groups to ask moms about their hopes and dreams for their children. 
The filming was timely as it was just days after the Orlando nightclub shooting, and we all were still reeling from that tragedy. New moms often talk how hard it is to watch the news or hear of tragic events once they have a child. That suddenly the world seems like a scary place, and you become acutely in tune with how precious life is. While we do want to know what is going on in the world, and while we can’t live with our heads in the sand, the thought of something happening to our child, or to ourselves leaving our child without a parent, just seems like too much to bear sometimes. 
While we all have to learn how to cope with things that are outside of our control, it does seem to help to acknowledge and talk about these issues out loud, with others who are feeling the same thing. Having a baby is a life moment like no other. You gaze at this new little person and imagine all kinds of wonderful things, all kinds of hopes and dreams. I would suggest that that experience is a universal, regardless of where you live.