...for the Contemplator

A life was lost today.

And at the moment when Woodbridge High School realized that they will never be able to laugh with Mr. Bentley again, things changed. The weather shifted, and schedules were shattered. Everyone realized that that could have been anyone. A loved one of their own, an acquaintance, a friend, or mentor.

Tell me why.

Why does something so sudden and so short have to impact the lives of so many others?

Quite frankly, it's not fair. It's not fair that one accident can purposefully damage so many other things. And I use purposefully intentionally. You can't go through life thinking you are unstoppable. Things will harm you, road blocks will get in your way, and you will start to realize that the life you thought you were living, the one filled to the fullest and the one that you thought was indestructible, is nothing more than a bird's nest. Sturdy for the moment, carrying so much life in such a small space. But once the wind comes and knocks it down, all that you're left with is twigs and string.

I didn't have the opportunity to really know Mr. Bentley. I would pass him in the halls, always smiling or in a rush, but that was the extent of our relationship.

It's interesting, really.

Someone is gone and suddenly you regret not really knowing them. The luxury of comfortability is gone. They aren't there everyday and it doesn't really hit you until everyday...turns to never again.

I don't want to live like this.

I don't want to live it a world where short-term turns to long-term and forever and a day turns to a day. Sadly, I do. And sadly, that won't change. What can change though, is our outlook on the life we've been living.

No matter how we word it, or how many ways you think about it, the fact of the matter is, things happen that change your life. Dramatically.

As much as I want to be able to, I can't even begin to fix that. Neither can anyone else out there, no matter how hard we try. We can't change the event, but we can change the result.

So, what will you do?

Let the traumatic effects of one event tear our nest to pieces, or will you grab the sticks and will you grab the twine and reshape your life in a way that remembers that moment in time and uses it to improve of the life you thought you were living.