I took my 10-year-old to see Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days recently. I have to admit that I was nervous. Before July 20, 2012, who would have ever questioned their personal safety or life when deciding to head to the theater?

Our world is different. The Aurora theater shooting this summer made one of the last safe places unsafe. Local terrorists attack people in the workplace, in schools, shopping malls and on the streets. These people all have some type of mental illness, but by injuring and killing people in places that were once considered safe, they terrorize all of us.

Fortunately these shootings aren’t commonplace and still random and infrequent.

It’s a mystery to all of the good, solid citizens of Colorado as to why so many of these violent acts occur in our state.

I considered skipping the movie and waiting to see it on DVD, but I was committed to writing a review and decided I was not going to let the local terrorists win. We cannot allow the fear of being attacked while getting an education, making a living, shopping or watching a movie. We must take back our communities and stand strong against evil.

I say all of that, but I was still nervous opening my child up to the chance that someone would copycat the Aurora incident and attack again.

My heart skipped a beat when I saw the extra security inside the theater and the guard standing at the back row. I told myself this was a good thing, not a scary thing, but I couldn’t help being slapped in the face by the reality of our world.

We didn’t pick our seats based on the best place to watch this time. I found seats on the end of an aisle, near the exit. I also noted all exits and entries and made mental notes about where we could duck or take shelter.

I was prepared to push my daughter out of harms way in case something happened during a kids’ movie.

When the movie began, I relaxed a little but still kept a vigilant eye, watching anyone who got up for extra popcorn or a bathroom break.

Gun control and better restrictions are needed. It may help slow down these killers by making it more inconvienient for them to acquire the military weapontry and protection to carry out an attack on innocent people. But these shootings seem to be a part of our world.

I don’t have the answers as to how to stop them or catch the killers before they act. I do hold hope that all of the “good” people in the world stand strong, take care of each other and work to save as many as they can in these situations. Just like in the Aurora theater event.

Colorado is full of giving, helpful people. Although these incidents bring out other forms of low life pond scum and you have to be careful when giving money to charities. If you still want to support the Aurora victims, Giving First is the best way to find local legal charities who are helping.