Tears and Life

Four-Year-Old Run Down While Petting Horse.

I was in tears earlier today when I heard that a four-year-old girl was run down by an intoxicated speeding motorist on a rural road in Ladner BC on the weekend. I know it was a few days ago, but I only heard about it on the news today.

I know it would be tragic to hear of any youngster getting killed and more so hearing that it was while doing something the little girl looked forward to doing every weekend (or was it every day?). She would walk skip and jump down the wide gravel shoulder of the road holding the hand of a grown-up to feed the horses through a fence. The shoulder of the road there very wide and the road straight. It would take an out of control car to strike anyone there. I'm not mentioning the name of the girl or family here as "the family has requested privacy." (Const Sharlene Brooks - Girl, 4 killed petting horse - Cheryl Chan, The Province, Published: Wed May 21, 2008 from Canada.com.)

The family wants the focus shifted from the magnitude of the tragedy to the celbration of their daughter's life and rather than buying flowers and other tributes to leave at the sight of the accident, instead to donate to the Vancouver Childen's Hospital Fund instead. They announced that in her death her organs were able to be donated to give 3 sick young children a chance at life.

It was this last thing that brought me to tears. It was such a beautiful act - the donation of their daughter's organs that others children might be able to live even while theirs could not.

That is what I want to focus on - in loss the parent's gave a gift of life even in their grief and that vivaciousness will live on in the lives of others and perhaps more with donations to the hospital fund.

Later.
~ Darrell

41