Cody

We've lost a beautiful soul today.

I have never lost a friend to death before - this is a first. I didn't realize exactly how hard it would hit me even though I have had a few days to process it. I realize that grief has the power to paralyze. It can stop you and make you go breathless, and you might never be the same.

Neither have I watched a friend lose their son before. I'm lucky that I have little experience with death, save my grandparents. I cannot imagine the sorrow one must feel.

It's sadness that gets me, that takes my breath away, that stops me in my tracks and makes me look at the sky and wonder: Why?

As a believer, as a person who trusts that there is more to this life than this, I hope and pray that his life is only over here. That somewhere, somehow, he is laughing and dancing and reuniting.

But here?

Here there is hurt. And confusion. And loss.

When death comes, to a loved one, to a parent, we reflect. And we wonder. And deep down, we remember: This gift will not last forever. We don't have to do anything spectacular with it, we just have to recognize it. Be grateful for it. Relish in it.