When life isn't easy.

Earlier this week, a woman who I went to school with, lost her son to cancer. I don't know her well, but her son was the same age as Dash. I cannot imagine how Maya and her family are feeling. I mean, I can imagine, but I don't want to. I can imagine how I'd feel if it were Dash and it makes me want to vomit. But imagining is very different than experiencing.
The fragility of life. . . There's a lot of cliche's that could be said here, but the bottom line is that tomorrow is promised to no one. We are all on loan to each other. We get some for long periods of time, others we get for a moment. No matter when someone close dies, it sucks. And the younger it occurs, the more tragic it feels. There are no words to console my friend. My prayers seem thin, though I try. And trying to give a reason for this would almost be insulting. It would be much easier to shake our fist and yell at the sky "WHY?!" I'd like to state that one life lost is not more tragic than another, but of course my biases to the ones I know betray me. I'm saddend by tornados in the south, earthquakes in the east, but very saddened by little Ronan's death. Hypocrisy? Whatever. Personal reflection, about how everything affects me, reveal more about myself than I care to share here. I have a great aunt who may not have much longer due to cancer. Cancer at any age is awful.
Live and love. Take nothing for granted. There are many things in life that don't seem to be "fair". We give and get things that aren't always deserved. My heart will break when some of my closest kin will die. Someone's heart will break when I die. Maya's family didn't deserve to go through this; neither did Ronan. About the only silver lining that I could come up with (that was worth a crap) was that I doubt if there is/was a child who was as loved and appreciated more than he was. This child knew explicitly how much his mommy and daddy loved him. That's awesome. I'm sure that once his parents found out that his life had a timeline, they squeezed every moment they could out of their son. Moreso than I do with mine. I know that even though I love my son like no other, I take advantage of the fact that he's a healthy little guy. And such a good boy! With perspective, behaviors can change. Ronan will make me a better dad. So for that, thanks Ronan.