(no subject)
My computer deleted my first entry >:(
Clifford Nyquist was one of those kids everyone wanted to be like. Straight A student, member of the Junior Olympic team for skiing, nominated for scholarships, excelled at every sport he tried... made varsity freshman year for Baseball. He was a shophomore in high school on Sunday afternoon. By Sunday night, he was no more.
I didn't know Cliff very well, but I had the chance to ski with him at the Gunstock Ski Club. He was one of the only kids who made me feel good about my skiing in comparison with the rest of the JIII's. He was supportive, a great guy. He knew how to make the driest practices a great time. The fact that I will never see him again scares me more than it does trouble me. I'm not saying I'm not moved by his death, but it is very shocking to hear the news.
His death got me to think. I've never thought about what it would be like if one of my close friends died. I can't even begin to fathom what it would be like to come to school, and they don't exist anymore. It's so hard to believe that the whole life of a person can be wiped away within the blink of an eye. A sophomore in high school is still growing, is still learning how to survive in this world. They haven't even begun to live yet. We haven't even left our parents' sides. How can so much become nothing so quickly? And if you're a guy like Clifford... You aren't ready to die. You have a whole life ahead of you. You feel invincible. You can't die. It doesn't seem possible that a life so new... so promising.. can be totally erased faster than you can say a silent word.
Life is one of those things we all take for granted. I take for granted my brothers will always be around... my parents will always lend me a helping hand... my friends will always show me a good time. I can't even imagine what it would be like to lose something I thought would always be here. We all take risks without even thinking what the consequences could be. Even if deep in our minds we do know, we take them anyways. What would a life be without risks? A person who is restricted by fears of death will forever hide in a closet of security. However, they will never live life, they will simply sit and be consumed by wild dreams of things that could happen, until they finally meet their end. If we all lived life this way, we would drive ourselves insane with a paraniod madness. We do have the capability to do things safely, to lessen the chance of death. Because we do know the consequences. But yet, we are so shocked when something goes wrong. A mother doesn't force her child to buckle his seat belt when she's driving him to school. A driver late for work quickly cuts in front of her, only to lose control in the winter roads, and causes a huge accident. She is buckled, she is alive. Her son, however, has been thrust through the front window, and dies instantly. Even when she knew what the consequences were, she took the risk, and let the boy remain unbuckled. So why is she so shocked that her son has died? Because she didn't believe he could be taken away from her so suddenly... That he could totally cease to exist within a matter of seconds.
Because a child can't die...
Right?
Clifford Nyquist was one of those kids everyone wanted to be like. Straight A student, member of the Junior Olympic team for skiing, nominated for scholarships, excelled at every sport he tried... made varsity freshman year for Baseball. He was a shophomore in high school on Sunday afternoon. By Sunday night, he was no more.
I didn't know Cliff very well, but I had the chance to ski with him at the Gunstock Ski Club. He was one of the only kids who made me feel good about my skiing in comparison with the rest of the JIII's. He was supportive, a great guy. He knew how to make the driest practices a great time. The fact that I will never see him again scares me more than it does trouble me. I'm not saying I'm not moved by his death, but it is very shocking to hear the news.
His death got me to think. I've never thought about what it would be like if one of my close friends died. I can't even begin to fathom what it would be like to come to school, and they don't exist anymore. It's so hard to believe that the whole life of a person can be wiped away within the blink of an eye. A sophomore in high school is still growing, is still learning how to survive in this world. They haven't even begun to live yet. We haven't even left our parents' sides. How can so much become nothing so quickly? And if you're a guy like Clifford... You aren't ready to die. You have a whole life ahead of you. You feel invincible. You can't die. It doesn't seem possible that a life so new... so promising.. can be totally erased faster than you can say a silent word.
Life is one of those things we all take for granted. I take for granted my brothers will always be around... my parents will always lend me a helping hand... my friends will always show me a good time. I can't even imagine what it would be like to lose something I thought would always be here. We all take risks without even thinking what the consequences could be. Even if deep in our minds we do know, we take them anyways. What would a life be without risks? A person who is restricted by fears of death will forever hide in a closet of security. However, they will never live life, they will simply sit and be consumed by wild dreams of things that could happen, until they finally meet their end. If we all lived life this way, we would drive ourselves insane with a paraniod madness. We do have the capability to do things safely, to lessen the chance of death. Because we do know the consequences. But yet, we are so shocked when something goes wrong. A mother doesn't force her child to buckle his seat belt when she's driving him to school. A driver late for work quickly cuts in front of her, only to lose control in the winter roads, and causes a huge accident. She is buckled, she is alive. Her son, however, has been thrust through the front window, and dies instantly. Even when she knew what the consequences were, she took the risk, and let the boy remain unbuckled. So why is she so shocked that her son has died? Because she didn't believe he could be taken away from her so suddenly... That he could totally cease to exist within a matter of seconds.
Because a child can't die...
Right?