It seems we are mourning one of our own among the victims, too--a boy named Dylan Hockley, who was autistic.
Article
Quote:
Nicole Hockley said that her son had an amazing bond with teacher Anne Marie Murphy — and that on the day of the shooting she searched for Murphy, knowing she would never leave Dylan alone.
She said Murphy never did leave Dylan — that Dylan died in the arms of his beloved teacher, who also was killed.
Hockley recalled asking Dylan at one time why he flapped his arms when he got excited. She hadn’t expected an answer because Dylan had a form of autism that left him with undeveloped language skills.
“Because I am a beautiful butterfly,” he told her.
... “If one butterfly can cause a hurricane, then 26 butterflies can change the world,” [Dylan's mother] said.
Earlier, family friends recounted stories of how they came to know the family, and of the happiness Dylan brought to them.
They described Dylan as a joyous, loving little boy who often would laugh himself silly by repeatedly replaying parts of his favorite movies.
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It's just not fair. Too young...
I've been discussing this at Wrong Planet, too, and someone there made a very astute comment: "It wasn't autism that caused this tragedy. It was hate."