Thursday, December 16, 2010

The Precious Gift of Life

In memory of Allison Edwards
April 10th, 1988 - Dec. 3rd, 2010

Life is a precious gift. We are all unique and special individuals. Yet so often life is too easily discarded. Too often it is tragically ended. It is at these times we realize too late how many lives we all touch. It is at times like these we realize how much we are going to miss the smile of another, or her laughter, or any of the special little quirks that endears a person to those close to her. It is at times like these we realize how much we take life for granted and how tenuous our connection to this world truly is.

When someone older dies we feel sad, but we can look back at their life, speak about fond memories, and feel they had a long and fruitful life. When a young person dies in the prime of their life, it is much more tragic. They had so much of a future, so much to look forward to.

I only knew Allison briefly. In the time I spent with her, however, I felt she had a loving, caring, beautiful soul. A selfish act of cruelty took her from our world. Our world has become less due to her loss. A being of wonder was stolen from all of us, like a star suddenly extinguished leaving nothing but a pinprick of darkness in the sky.

Such a tragedy serves to remind us all how we should cherish one another. We should cherish the smiles, the laughter and the joy. If we could all simply learn to love each other and to remember how precious life is, perhaps then such tragedies could be avoided. Is it so difficult to learn to respect each other as individuals? Is it so difficult to remember that each person touches so many others in so many ways and that taking a life steals from all? Perhaps it is for some. We can only strive to teach such principles to all. We can only endeavor to become the best human beings we can possibly be. Let us try to remember the good in each of us and live as best we can each day, for one never knows when the last day will pass. May we all one day find peace.

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