Dear Alyssa: A Heartwarming Video from Mother to Daughter

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PHOTO CREDIT: PML 2008, FLICKR
https://bit.ly/2TKhDaQ

By Hadley Steele

A little over a year ago, the Parkland shooting happened at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. As a response to the anniversary, a mother turned activist, Lori Alhadeff, made an emotional video in memory of her daughter, Alyssa Alhadeff, who died in the shooting. She recounts one of her final days with Alyssa, a lighthearted story of a fight she and her daughter had gotten into over a Spanish textbook. Alhadeff breaks into tears as she describes dropping her daughter off at school the day of the shooting, “She looked so beautiful. She was wearing a black and white dress, white converse sneakers, and her hair was just perfect, her makeup was perfect,” she continues, crying, “I told her I loved her.” Alhadeff laughs about funny memories and wipes tears away for others. The motherly love and connection shine through in the craft of the video.

Below the video, there is a written letter to her daughter describing how life is going without her and how much her family misses her. The simple retelling of memories and bickering shows the watchers how this could have happened to anyone. The video is strong with emotion and makes an argument for gun reform. The black background, bright red Parkland soccer jersey, and “I would take all the bullets 4 u” written across Alhadeff’s arms create a setting to listen and learn from the experience from one mother.

I initially saw a segment of the video on Instagram and wanted to watch the whole thing to learn more about some of the victims. Issues like gun reform have been a huge topic in politics, so learning about personal perspectives have made the argument of restriction a must.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLXV0HGAbB4

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