Too Young To Die

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We're baaacckk! After taking a nice holiday break, Maria and I are back in the blogging business. We hope everyone had a happy and restful holiday with family and friends. Time to get this year started. Strap yourselves in, folks! We're in for a bumpy ride.

Not that I want to start this year out on a sad note, but I have to say how deeply sorry I am for John Travolta and Kelly Preston on the death of their teenaged son, Jett. Only 16 years old! That's just one year older than my teenager. I can't even imagine . . .

As moms, we worry about our children dying from the moment they are born. It seems every age brings with it a new neurosis about the dangers our children face: Newborns dying from SIDS, infants choking, toddlers drowning, schoolchildren getting hit by cars. But as our kids get older, we start to feel a little more secure, I think. Especially when they're tweens and teens, you don't worry so much about them dying. You figure that they made it this far, they're pretty much home-free, right? That's why teenager deaths are so difficult to accept. These kids are almost adults, so young and full of life. They seem immortal at 16 and 17, and perhaps that explains some reckless behavior on their part.

I'm not sure this blog has much of a point at all, except to say that all children are too young to die, whether they're one hour old or 16 years old. My heart goes out to the Travolta family, and anyone else who has lost a child. I hope I never, ever, have to feel your pain.

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