"Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty;

not on your past misfortunes of which all men have some."
Charles Dickens

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

So much for the NS experience...

I heard terrible news today that another death had occurred in the NS camp that my niece is in. Today, while they were at their 2 day camp (dunno where) one of the girls fainted in the campsite toilet and drowned in the toilet water. What a needless death! I really cannot imagine how such a thing could happen.

Last week, when she returned to camp, she found out that one of the guys there had also drowned when swimming during the CNY break. They were already greatly saddened by that news and now, in less than a week, this happens.

I can only imagine what the family of the two deceased teenagers must be going through. So many thoughts and "what-ifs" playing relentlessly in their minds. As for the rest of us, it's shock and horror, followed by relief and then immediately guilt? A life has been lost and it could just as well have been someone you knew and loved, yet we still are relieved it isn't one of ours? Selfish? Extremely so. I hate the feeling and wish to banish the thought. Darkness seems to get a kick out of these feelings which I would label as primal. Perhaps that's what people mean when they say to beware and not to take a thought and dwell/verbalize it, as then, we would have personalized it and made it our own.

I am deeply shocked and find it very hard to accept this death as a mere accident. I hope that the parents would carry out a detailed enquiry to discover how such an "accident" could have happened.