It may seem odd, but the tragedy that happened yesterday at Virginia Tech is taking a profound toll on me and the way I view the supposed sanctuary I am in everyday at school.

School is supposed to be a safe place, a place we go to to get away from our other problems, to absorb knowledge and learn about problems that are happening around the world. But when those problems come home, we don't know how to react.

The mass murder at Virginia Tech is situation where everyone says "that will never happen at my school". But why could it happen there and not right here at ASU West? There are disgruntled people everywhere, people who don't know how to handle their rage any way other than violently.

I was listening to NPR on the way to school yesterday (as I usually do), but yesterday was different. They had the President of Arizona PIRG, which is a student organization at ASU. He was saying that one of the problems at Virginia Tech was that the students were not notified immediately after the first shooting happened. (Who knows how many students may have stayed in their dorm if they had known there was a shooter on campus?) There is no system in place at ASU, other then email, to notify students if there is a problem on campus. And what about commuter students like me? How would they get the word out if something happened on campus to students who don't watch the news?

I was walking up to campus yesterday after hearing the news all day and listening to information that was coming in, and all I could think of was what if that happened today, at ASU West? There is no way of knowing. There was alot of talk about the 1966 UT Austin shooting, which before yesterday was the deadliest campus shooting in history. In that case, a man was on top of a building and shot down at students walking to class. I walked up to campus yesterday and on one of the buildings was a person standing on a high balcony looking down at students. This was not someone suspicious, it was just a girl probably waiting for her next class to start. But it made, well, freak out a little bit. And right now I am in the library. I keep thinking "what if someone comes in and starts shooting" like the kids at Columbine did? What would I do?

I guess the point of this is to vent my fears and to realize that I can't live my life in fear. I didn't know the kids who died yesterday at Virginia Tech, but my heart goes out to them and their families. They are kids like me, just students wanting to make some difference in the world by getting a higher education. It has made me realize the importance of just...living. Living day to day and living like you have 100 years still on Earth, even if you may die tomorrow.

Unfortunatley, a tragedy like this also has political implications. Already there is talk of gun control issues, and campus security problems across the country. Why did it take President Bush a week to go to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina where hundreds were killed, but he is already in Virginia the day after the shooting? Honestly, who cares? It sickens me that after 32 young, intelligent people were murdered the media and politicians have to turn this into a political issue? Yes-gun control and security are important issues, I am not saying they aren't. But can't we, as a country, unite under this tragedy and mourn for the studrents who died? Is that really so hard? Apparently it is, and that makes me so sad.

My prayers go out to everyone affected by the Virginia Tech shootings, and I pray to God that even after this our schools can become sanctuaries yet again.