The real crisis in town

Saturday, May 1, 2010 seemed like just another ordinary day, although it seemed too good to be true. There wasn’t much to do or much we felt like doing.
My kids enjoyed playing in the driveway. My husband dug into his yard work routine and I went about doing the usual dreaded household chores, laundry, and paperwork while periodically checking up on the kids and the husband.
Little did we know, things were about to drastically change – the way we brush our teeth, wash hands, do dishes, make coffee, cook, water the lawn and even the way we purchase bottled water – not just for an hour, not just for a day, but for an unknown period of time.
It’s kind of like the people who were recently stranded because all the flights to Europe were cancelled indefinitely due to the volcanic cloud of ash from Iceland.
Or even like the recent abundance of rain which flooded so many of our basements and caused ordinary days to turn into days we had to baby-sit automatic sump pumps, search for sold-out wet vacs and wait for the plumber to come.
Many would agree, 2010 has been a very unusual year, particularly when it comes to mother nature.
But nothing can compare to April 29, 2010, the day we experienced hurricane-like gusts of wind, so strong, you felt like your car would fly away.
So evil and unpredictable, it caused a tree to fall on an innocent nine year old boy, minding his own business, playing basketball outdoors in his neighborhood with his friends.
It somehow chose him, causing a fatal injury.
In times of crisis like the recent water main break, we must stop and think about this loss and how it has affected this family in our town.
Every day we should remember him and hope he is in a better place. A world where he will not get hurt any more. A world where he can play safely. A world where we will see him again.
It is tragic when something like this happen. It puts everything in a totally different perspective. The water crisis was nothing more than a nuisance. That child should still be here today. Words cannot do enough justice to express what this loss means.
May his parents and sister find strength from his memory and the support of relatives, friends and neighbors.
May his spirit live on in all our hearts.