Ups and Downs

Today I write out of sadness and I am a little surprised at that. Usually I am pretty upbeat. Imagine a young family of two loving parents and two young children. Dad has an appointment in town and leaves in his truck. Mom has just gone back to nursing now that her children are older--in school at least. For some reason Dad's truck veers off the highway hitting a UPS truck. The result is this husband and father of two is dead and the other driver seriously injured. A week ago my husband and I were at the funeral home to pay our respects along with hundreds of others. We go because it is the right thing to do and we have a need to try to help although there is really nothing we can do. We hug our friends and hold their widowed daughter, drained and broken. My tears start. There is really nothing I can do to help.

I spent a sleepless night after that experience, replaying it all in my mind over and over until I finally dropped off for a couple of hours out of sheer exhaustion. For the next few days, I thought often of this young widow, hoping she was coping, and feeling some portion of her grief. How could she survive? What would she do? How long would it take to recover? I worried about their finances, and hoped she would be okay. Eventually, as so often happens in these situations, I got on with other things and thought less and less of them until today.

In Paris there is a fine little jewelry store which I have claimed as "my" jewelry store. Ed, the jeweller, and his wife, Esther, have walked me through getting my wedding rings updated after 40 years plus, getting others of my rings resized, buying a watch for my husband's Christmas present, and a host of watch battery replacements for my collection. Just last week I had them replace the one in my pink Swarovski crystal watch that I made. Esther especially has chatted me up every time I've been there, telling me of their new dream house and the boxes which still aren't unpacked after their recent move and of their children. Why am I telling all this? She died on the weekend in a tragic fluke of a motorcycle accident. I found out this morning and my heart lurched.

Both so young, with kids and loving partners, everything to live for, yet suddenly snatched away. Why? I have no answer.

This time I won't go to the funeral home as I am barely an acquaintance but, nevertheless, my eyes close as I shake my head and feel so sad at the horrible loss for this man, his children, and the community around. And I realize that my worries about my torn-up street mean nothing. My husband said it in his message to me this morning. Carpe diem!