What Do You Do When Nowhere Feels Safe?

In Just the Last 48 Hours…

Today is September 11th, a day of remembrance in America.
A day many of us recall exactly where we were, what we felt, and how our world shifted.

But as I reflect this year, the grief feels heavier. Not just because of what happened then.

It’s because of what’s happening now.

In Just the Last 48 Hours…

• Charlie Kirk, a controversial political figure, was assassinated during a speaking engagement at a university in Utah.

• Another school shooting rocked Colorado. Another community shattered, again.

• Qatar, the place my family and I currently call home, was bombed with U.S. acknowledgment, or whatever you choose to believe about it.

It’s only September 11.
And still, I find myself asking the same question I’ve asked too many times before:

What is America coming to and what’s actually being done about it?

No Matter Your Political View, This Is Not Normal

You don’t have to agree with Charlie Kirk to be disturbed by his assassination.
You don’t have to be a parent to feel heartbroken over yet another school shooting.
And you don’t have to be anti-anything to say: this is not okay.

Because no one should die for what they say.
And children should not fear walking into school.
And entire families shouldn’t be wondering if going to the grocery store will be their last outing.

I Don’t Want My Daughters Growing Up in a World Where Guns Are Always the Answer

Every time we turn on the news, we’re reminded that “freedom” in America often comes with the heavy price of fear.
Of polarization.
Of violence met with silence.
Of more guns presented as the solution to too many guns.

As a mother of two young girls, I ask myself every day:

What am I willing to normalize for the sake of comfort?
What is my responsibility to them, to myself, to our community?

So, Yes, We’re Still Living in Doha

Some people have asked if we’re staying in Qatar, especially after the recent bombing.
The answer is: yes.

Oddly enough, I feel safe here.
Safer than I have been in many parts of the United States.

There are no active shooter drills at my daughter's school.
No fear when I run errands.
No instinct to scan every room for an exit.

That sense of settledness… is something I didn’t even realize I was missing until I found it again abroad.

This Isn’t About “Leaving America.” It’s About Reclaiming Peace.

I’m not writing this to shame anyone or pretend like life abroad is perfect.
But I am here to say: we can ask better questions.
We can build different futures.
We can make decisions rooted in peace, not just patriotism.

Maybe for your family, that means staying.
Maybe for someone else, it means leaving.
But for all of us it should mean refusing to accept violence as the cost of freedom.

Let’s have the hard conversations.

Let’s talk about safety. Let’s talk about options. Let’s talk about the world we’re raising our children in, and how we can make it better.

Because silence isn’t protection.
And fear should never be policy.

With hope,
Sonaya