It feels like not much matters in the wake of another massacre at a U.S. school

This is a column by Shireen Ahmed, who writes opinion for CBC Sports. For more information about CBC's Opinion section, please see the FAQ.

"When are we going to do something? I'm tired. I'm so tired of getting up here and offering condolences to the devastated families that are out there. I'm so tired. Excuse me. I'm sorry. I'm tired of the moments of silence. Enough!" — Steve Kerr, head coach of the Golden State Warriors.

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When I talked with my editor about this week's column, we hashed through my idea to write about my experience of being in Edmonton this week during the Battle of Alberta — the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs featuring the Oilers and the Calgary Flames.

I was visiting for my son's volleyball tournament just as the playoff series was getting heated. I spoke with many community members about the enormous excitement, the feeling of a joyful celebration in the air and the hope for a beloved team to hoist the Cup for the first time since 1990. Oilers flags were flying everywhere, and I got wrapped up in the frenzy when I wasn't cheering emphatically for my son's team. 

But all this fun and lightheartedness came crashing to a halt when I opened a message from my partner letting me know about the horrific shooting in Uvalde, Tex.

I spend a lot of my time online, but the last few days were intensely committed to the tournament, my son and his team. I had not seen the news of the murders of 19 children at Robb Elementary School. I didn't know that a teacher and another adult were also killed. I didn't know that the predominantly Latinx community had been attacked by an 18-year-old who first shot his