Earthquake

A magnitude 7 earthquake has hit Port-au-Prince, Haiti. It has literally flattened most of an entire city in what is arguably the poorest nation in the western hemisphere. There is an estimated hundreds of thousands of people dead. All of a sudden my problems seem so small and ridiculous. Really, I don't have very many big problems, but now they really seem insignificant. I can't imagine how frightened and helpless the people of Haiti are feeling right now. I have experienced a few earthquakes in my life, the largest being a 5.9 on my mom's 40th birthday. And I had a 4.1 as recently as last week. Sadly I didn't even notice it, thought it was a big military jet from Nellis! That is nothing compared to what happened yesterday. I would imagine a lot of the damage to the infrastructure is due to the fact that they are such a poor country and things are not built as strong as they are here. I think this can serve as a reminder to us all that things may seem to get bad sometimes, but remember it could always get a lot worse.

"Bodies were everywhere in Port-au-Prince; those of tiny children adjacent to schools; women in the rubble-strewn streets with stunned expressions frozen on their faces; men hidden beneath plastic tarps and cotton sheets" -AP

Jenny

I got a pretty sad notice in my facebook inbox last night. It said that my friend, Jennifer Green Lilienthal had passed away due to liver cancer. Her husband had logged into her account and sent me a message telling me. It surprisingly sent me into a flood of tears thinking about how she was my age, not really that old, and such a sweet person. We were just notified within the past month that there were some tumors, but it was nothing to worry about. Apparently someone was wrong. This just all happened so quickly. Jen was one of those 'special' people if you know what I mean. I hate to use the word handicapped or retarded. There is such a negative connotation that goes with those words. Words are important to me. Anyway, I knew her in high school and she was the sweetest person you could ever meet. She definitely loved people. If you became her friend, you were a friend for life. She was ALWAYS sending me emails and popping up on my chats. She loved the Denver Broncos....YES!!...so we always had something to talk about. If there was something bothering me she would encourage me and remind me that things could always get worse. She was in my corner cheering me on during the good times and helping me thru the bad. There were so many people that hurt her. It always broke my heart. However, she never let that stop her from being the caring woman that she was. I believe she is now flying with the angels where she belongs. No one can hurt her and she isn't limited by her problems.

There seems to be quite a few of my former school mates that have passed on. It is a bit alarming. I know people die, but every few months I open the newspapers obituary page and see people that I knew in school. Some I knew better than others. A few stick out, such as Yale Abernathy. He died over ten years ago, but he was such an amazingly, talented guy and a wonderful friend. This world lost a lot when he passed. I miss him.

Just a reminder to always let those that you care about, know that you care about them. Words mean a lot. Don't let pride stop you from saying "I'm sorry" when you hurt someone, and don't forget to make the people that you love feel special. You never know if it is the last time you will ever talk to them again. I am grateful that the last chat I had with Jen was a good one. All about our Broncos. Rest In Peace my dear friend. I look forward to seeing you on the other side.