A Bizarre Sunday

Sunday 10th Sept 2006 was a bizarre day. So bizarre that I can’t get it out of my mind. In the morning, I attended the wedding of one of my students. It was an emotional event for me because she had had such a hard childhood and weathered stormy teenage years. To see her as a bride, on the brink of a new phase of her life was a moving moment for me. I was just glad that she had held it all together and built a life for herself. Then, in the afternoon, I had to attend a funeral. Of a 42-year old man who had committed suicide. What hopelessness and despair must have overwhelmed him to the extent that he would take his own life? And how helpless the survivors feel – not knowing what they could have done or said to this man if only they had known… The day ended with the 50th birthday celebration of a dear friend – a surprise organised by friends and family. It was a great evening, spent in the company of old friends, catching up with each others’ lives.

3 life events – a gamut of different emotions. Pride & thankfulness, sorrow & despair, joy & contentment. It seemed as if I had experienced a slice of life.