gaining perspective

I found out the other night that a friend of mine died on Monday. He technically was my sister's friend. They dated for awhile. But he kept in contact with me through Facebook and stuff. Every now and then he'd write me a goofy little message. He was just a baby. So, so young and really just full of life. He loved his family, his friends and his life. He was just one of those people that seemed invincible. He was a force of nature.

When my mom told me, it stopped me in my tracks. I just cried. I mean, we weren't super close, but he had so much ahead of him. It really blew my mind. It's always sad when someone dies, but his death just shocked the hell outta me. I guess it's always that way when someone you know dies. The face on the news means something then. He was just so strong, healthy, cute beyond belief, happy, funny, and sweet.

It really kind of puts you in your place. I was just rolling along, hurting and feeling sorry for myself, and then I heard that and it kind of shook me. I could die tomorrow. Would I be happy with how I've been spending the last few months? Probably not. It's not like you just get over a divorce or something like that. It's a process and there's lots of grieving and sorting to do. You can't stop that. But you can remember to be grateful. You can remember that each day is a gift. You can remember that there are much, much worse things than what is happening to you. You can keep things in perspective.

If you're the praying kind, send some prayers his family's way. Here's the link to an article that my mom sent me a few minutes ago. Read it, look at his picture and really see him, and remember to keep things in perspective.