Jeff Westover
02-17-2007, 06:24 PM
No doubt that most of you saw via the news the week about the shootings we experienced here in Salt Lake at a local mall. I was on my way home from Boise when I heard about it and quickly tuned my radio to the local channel to find out what was going on.
While this particular mall was not one where I have business I was never the less filled with fear that in some way I would know somone involved. Thankfully, as that awful night progressed those fears were not realized for me.
On Tuesday as the news slowly started to trickle out they finally began to identify victims of the shooting spree. As my dear wife and I watched the news, we were momentarily relieved to NOT know any of them. One name did stand out for Sandy -- the name of Jeffrey Walker. She knew a Jeff Walker years before, when she was just a teenager. But that was a long time ago in a place far away. That's a common enough name that we both just kind of looked at each other as if to say -- no, there's no way.
The next night on the news they showed this man's picture and my wife just about had a heart attack. It was him after all.
It had already been a very somber week. Sandy had already attended the funeral of a neighbor who passed away after a 3 year battle with breast cancer. We were shocked by the shootings on Monday and then to be hit with this news was almost too much to bear.
Some 25 years ago my wife tended this man's eldest children. He was friends with my wife's parents and Sandy was effusive in her praise of this man and how he made her feel those many years ago.
Last night we stood in line for more than 3 hours at his viewing and today we spent another 3 hours attending his funeral.
Why am I sharing this here?
Because this man's funeral is having very much the same effect upon me as Christmas spent in it's best sense. This was no ordinary funeral, though he was in many ways just an ordinary man. This was a celebration of life, an exercise in forgiveness and a pause in the traffic we call life to be grateful. Just as is Christmas, to me.
As Clarence told George in Its a Wonderful Life, one man's life touches another. I was, to this man, a total stranger. Yet somehow his life touched mine today and because of it my life experience is different.
Hug your loved ones tonight and make sure they know they are loved. You might not get that chance tomorrow.
Jeff
While this particular mall was not one where I have business I was never the less filled with fear that in some way I would know somone involved. Thankfully, as that awful night progressed those fears were not realized for me.
On Tuesday as the news slowly started to trickle out they finally began to identify victims of the shooting spree. As my dear wife and I watched the news, we were momentarily relieved to NOT know any of them. One name did stand out for Sandy -- the name of Jeffrey Walker. She knew a Jeff Walker years before, when she was just a teenager. But that was a long time ago in a place far away. That's a common enough name that we both just kind of looked at each other as if to say -- no, there's no way.
The next night on the news they showed this man's picture and my wife just about had a heart attack. It was him after all.
It had already been a very somber week. Sandy had already attended the funeral of a neighbor who passed away after a 3 year battle with breast cancer. We were shocked by the shootings on Monday and then to be hit with this news was almost too much to bear.
Some 25 years ago my wife tended this man's eldest children. He was friends with my wife's parents and Sandy was effusive in her praise of this man and how he made her feel those many years ago.
Last night we stood in line for more than 3 hours at his viewing and today we spent another 3 hours attending his funeral.
Why am I sharing this here?
Because this man's funeral is having very much the same effect upon me as Christmas spent in it's best sense. This was no ordinary funeral, though he was in many ways just an ordinary man. This was a celebration of life, an exercise in forgiveness and a pause in the traffic we call life to be grateful. Just as is Christmas, to me.
As Clarence told George in Its a Wonderful Life, one man's life touches another. I was, to this man, a total stranger. Yet somehow his life touched mine today and because of it my life experience is different.
Hug your loved ones tonight and make sure they know they are loved. You might not get that chance tomorrow.
Jeff