“The bitterest tears shed over graves are for words left unsaid,
and for deeds left undone.” … Harriet Beecher Stowe

***

Light in the darkness

I was told today that an acquaintance of mine had died.

I didn’t know him that well. It was a work relationship, but I knew him well enough to know that he was a truly good and honest man.

Married, with two young daughters, he and his wife had put the kids down for a nap. He decided to do some late afternoon fishing, while she chose to relax comfortably in their rented cabin.

Hours passed. Authorities were called, and a family’s chance at a wonderful life was shattered. Severe head trauma was the cause of death. He had most likely fallen while climbing over slippery rocks in search of the next great fishing spot.

Where is the kindness in moments like this? Certainly not in life itself, which easily excuses itself by claiming “I am what I am”.

Sadly, I believe this to be true. Life is what it is. The pursuit of fish is not guilty. The slippery rocks harbor no malice. The loving wife watches her husband disappear in the distance, faithful for his return, and anxious to share her love when he does. She does not willingly put him in harm’s way. And the young man himself has every intention of returning to the woman and children he lives for.

So why do things like this happen? I don’t know.

What I do know is that the young widow will be comforted by those who love her. Two young girls will blossom into young women knowing that their father loved them. A family will grow old, having suffered great loss, and will pass forward the goodness of it’s lost soul. This, is kindness.

People will gather, tears will be shed, laughter will be the exclamation point for fond memories. A mother and her daughters will continue to move forward because of the kindness of the people around them.

Good will come from tragedy, because even though life is not kind, the people that live it are.

Be loving. Be compassionate. Be kind.

Because today the sun will rise, and tonight the sun will set, and everything in between simply is what it is.

What life can become, is up to us.