Dealing With Distant Death
Last night my sister called me with a grave tone in her voice. I was afraid, at first, that it would be bad news about Mom. Rather, she told me that my cousin's daughter had died.
"I told you she was sick, right?" "... No!"
Apparently her daughter -- just two years old -- had managed to get E. Coli, followed by her kidneys shutting down. Everything went downhill from there, it seems. My cousin is, understandably, a wreck, as is my aunt. I feel terrible for the both of them, and part of me feels awkward in that. Why? I'd never met this girl -- sadly, the only time I ever even GET to SEE my cousins, it seems, is during a funeral, and the very young never came with. I fear my condolences would seem somewhat insincere in light of this fact, and this is compounded by the fact that there's no way any of us can afford to fly out to the east coast.
Regardless, I want to do SOMETHING for my cousin -- I worry about her.
"I told you she was sick, right?" "... No!"
Apparently her daughter -- just two years old -- had managed to get E. Coli, followed by her kidneys shutting down. Everything went downhill from there, it seems. My cousin is, understandably, a wreck, as is my aunt. I feel terrible for the both of them, and part of me feels awkward in that. Why? I'd never met this girl -- sadly, the only time I ever even GET to SEE my cousins, it seems, is during a funeral, and the very young never came with. I fear my condolences would seem somewhat insincere in light of this fact, and this is compounded by the fact that there's no way any of us can afford to fly out to the east coast.
Regardless, I want to do SOMETHING for my cousin -- I worry about her.