Checking out...

Unlike many of my contemporaries, I believe if you are so completely miserable that you don't want to continue living then you should just find a way to deal with ending your life. Preferably, you should notify the authorities and walk off into some isolated area where no family member will accidentally stumble over your remains. You could even arrange for a professional to discover your remains instead. No, don't bother to leave an explanatory note. Nothing you could possibly say would truly explain your selfish behavior to your family or loved ones.

What I do NOT understand is the proliferation of suicidal idiots who insist on taking a host of innocent people with them. In what way does that make things better? What purpose is served by killing total strangers or small children or grandmothers? In the last few days, there have been several horrendous killing sprees in the United States.

One was in a restaurant, another in a shopping mall, and yet another in a school. In all cases, the perpetrator walked into the building, shot several people and then killed themselves in front of witnesses. What is accomplished by this selfish, self-serving action? Are these people looking for lasting fame? If so, they aren't succeeding.

Mere weeks after the killings, sometimes mere days after the killings, their name is lost in the fog and haze of all the other tragedies in the country. For the people immediately involved, yes, they are left with the miserable legacy of remembering for a long time. But outside of that small sphere of influence, the rest of the world marches on--not uncaring, but worn down by the continual weight of idiocy and stupidity such individuals demonstrate. There is no power in taking innocent lives. There is no accomplishment or lasting fame. All that remains is the grief and painful loss and sad bewilderment.

For those family members left behind, my most profound condolences. Death of a loved one is difficult enough to deal with under any circumstances. Death at the purposeful hand of another is a staggering loss.

For the family members of the perpetrators, you have my deepest sympathy and prayers for your loss is magnified by the terrible actions of your loved one. I cannot imagine your grief.

For the rest of us, perhaps it is time to exercise a new awareness of our surroundings. In each of the cases, some of the survivors indicated there was a window of opportunity to escape. Too often, caught up in the drudgery of everyday life, we don't see danger approaching us--even when its in plain sight. Yes, its tiring to always be alert to a possible threat to our well-being. But I have an idea that the survivors of the most recent events would tell us that they would gladly be tired for that reason.

Blessings on your days!

Anny