Death and Epiphanies

In my line of work, I find myself dealing with death on a regular basis. I've seen and experienced things most human beings should never have to. I've come across people who've been dead or damn near close to it. I've witnessed police shootings and I've seen someone part from this world by the hand of some other person. I've seen people die at an old age, I've seen people leave this world too soon. I've witnessed people take their own lives, I've come across some when it was too late to stop them. Accidents, murder, you name it, I've seen people go out in all sorts of fashions. To be honest, I've gotten used to it to the point where I'm almost desensitized to it. Every once in a while, however, death manages to hit home. This past week, I've had three run-ins with death himself: A LODD death of a firefighter in Prince William County and the Va Tech shootings (both with in less than an hour of each other) and the one-year anniversary of my father's death on the 20th. Thankfully, Friday wasn't too bad although I'm really going to try to visit my father's grave before I leave for Boise. With that out of the way, here's where the rant begins. By now, those that truly know me know I'm very liberal with my views with the world. Yes, I said the world. We may live in the US but we live on this planet with a few billion other people that don't happen to reside snugly between sea to shining sea. Anyways, one of the biggest problems that the U.S. has is it's media and how they portray national and international events (primarily national). Another problem with the U.S. (and ask anyone that's been to another country or is from another country) is the U.S. is pretty self-centered. I'm not going to say that the Tech shootings were one of the worst atrocities that's ever happened to the country in the past 100 years but they were still pretty horrible none the less. Now, I'm not going to go off too much because the only person responsible for the murders is dead. I'm not one to blame the parents or the lax of security and response at tech for what happened, I blame the person that did it. There's a lot more going on than just 33 kids dying. There are 33 families that had to bury children. Children, mind you. There are thousands of Va Tech students that have to deal with lost friends. There are several more thousands of students whose innocence was ripped away from them as fast as the lives from the students who died. I for one can relate to that. I've seen family members buried. I've seen animals die. Nothing can claim your innocence as a human being than watching another human being depart this world violently. That, however, is for another post. Now, before the killer probably even woke up for the day, a 24 year-old firefighter was fighting a fire in a home in Woodbridge when he was killed while he was looking for a person who was possibly still trapped inside. Personally, I think any firefighter that dies in the Line of Duty should receive national recognition for sacrificing his life for that of another human being. They don't call it the ultimate sacrifice for nothing.

America is the epitome of capitalistic societies. Everything, every political, private, or commercial organization, from health care to our own government, in some way, shape, or form concerns itself with the amount of money it makes. Some more than others. The American media is no different. I guarantee you that Fox 5 nor The Washington Post cares about the feelings of Tech students, their families, nor anyone else that was affected by the shootings. No, if they did, they wouldn't still be pestering those still on campus. They'd let them be and allow them to move on instead of digging up the past. If the media truly cared about the feelings for others, if they truly cared about humanity and its seldom acts of selflessness and dedication, they would've mentioned the local firefighter that gave his life so that "others may live". You can hear it in the voices of the reporters and the news anchor people. Real emotion can not be faked, it can not be created. Real emotion pours out of the soul with a force only the human heart can create. Real emotion is flawless. The next time you listen to the news, listen to the anchors and the reporters. Listen to the out of place adjectives. Listen for the fake emotion and stress on such words as "horrible" and "devastating". Watch how their faces change in an instant to reflect the mood of the story. The concept of humanity can be a powerful one if we all start learning to think and feel at a human level...not a regional level. 33 people lost their lives in one moment last Monday. 20+ people lose their lives in single events every day in Iraq. Flesh and blood, some who don't carry a single hating bone in their bodies, who all they want to do is just live life and try to be happy. There are people killed by the hundreds from acts of Genocide in Africa everyday. There are people that die by the hundreds from simple, preventable illnesses to starvation. I will not ever forget what happened in Blacksburg because to me, it does hit home. That could've been any one of a handful of friends that go to Tech. But I've experienced death before. I myself have been close to it. I read the news and hurt deep in my heart every time I read about anyone dying prematurely. For a lot of people, Americans and people throughout the rest of the world, death doesn't become a reality until it hits home for them.

My opinions piss people off. I know. I try to live a life of selflessness and wonder. I want to meet others that have never set foot on this side of the world. I want to experience everything this planet has to offer. One thing I guess I can consider an epiphany is that it's hard to experience humanity and the world which God has given us with a blind heart and an empty soul.






My thoughts and prayers are to the following:

The friends, families, and firefighters all across the world who lost a brother in the service last monday in the line of duty

The friends and families of those killed at Virginia Tech on Monday

The innocent people and their families throughout the world that have lost their lives due to acts of violence, genocide, and misplaced self-righteousness

People throughout the world who experience pain and sorrow on a day to day basis

My father. I love you and I miss you terribly. I'll see you later.