Morning ritual

                         When reading the paper in the morning I always read the obituaries. This , to many, seems a morbid thing to do. Well, it is a hold over from my days working in home health care and treating the terminally ill. I would read the obits to make sure that my former patients weren't in them. Or, if it turned out they were in them, that at least they died peacefully ...
                            Well, I haven't worked in that field in a while but I still find myself looking over the obituaries and this morning I read one about a girl. she was 19 years old. I always stop and read about the people who pass away under the age of 60, but 19... that is something no one should ever have to read about. She did not die of cancer, or some dibilatating illness that somewhat prepared her loved ones for the inevitable on the horizon. Nope, a car accident took the life of this young, pretty girl, who was an aspiring photographer right here in Tampa. I realize there are stories like this everyday, car accidents that snatch the life right out from under people, unsuspecting people who are just trying to get to their destination, but never make it. I saw first hand during my nursing career how accidents can ruin lives, either through death of a loved one or causing life long ramifications if the person survives.
                              The parents and siblings of this young girl lived 3000 miles away in California, according to the article. I can only imagine the phone call they had to receive, and the pain of not being able to get here quickly , even if just to say goodbye.I'm sure, like every parent in the world, they worried constantly about their child .Especially being so far away, I know I would. As I read this particular obituary I found myself shaking my head and thinking of my own children. My oldest can get behind the wheel in 8 months...
                                So to some of you reading the obituaries sounds like a morbid, depressing thing to start your Sunday morning. To me, it brings me down to earth, to realize the fragility of life, it honors those who have died by reading a little bit about who they were and what their contributions to our society were. This morning it did a little more, it made the mother in me hurt for these parents who lost their daughter to a senseless accident, and it made me stop and pray for the safety of my children .Because to have to write an obituary for anyone in your family is painful but to start with "She was 19 "..is unbearable.