Death, life should not be taken for granted

Death.
At the very mention of the word, thoughts, experiences and memories may fill your mind.
Horrific. Tragic. Peaceful. Each experience is different.
When we learned of the tragic death of Christan Rainey’s family, our minds and hearts immediately went out to this young man. It’s one thing to learn of possible political scandals and nuclear tests when we turn to CNN every morning, but to learn that a man, one of OUR brothers, has killed his wife and stepchildren strikes a different cord.
So what did we do? We rolled up our sleeves, made phone calls, sent e-mails, canned the campus, donated portions of our refund checks and essential gas money. Why? Because it was just that serious.
We want to thank you Southern University again, for stepping up to the plate and coming through when someone else was in a serious time of need.
More importantly however, we need to be here for this young man who has lost his entire immediate family. We have donated money and expressed condolences, but what about his mental and spiritual well-being? We at Southern University should not stop here-our efforts must continue.
Judiciously speaking, we believe that this man should earnestly pay for his actions. Ultimately, he will have to deal with this on Judgment Day, but morally speaking, to take the lives of innocent children for lackadaisical reasons is disreputable and atrocious.
And to think that this heart-wrenching event took place on Oct. 1, the dawn of Breast Cancer Awareness month, further boggles the mind. Women across the county-victims and survivors-have had to at one time ponder the possibility of losing their lives to a malignant disease in which they have no control over.
Detra Rainey-Simmons herself was undergoing chemotherapy treatments for colon cancer… when it rains, it pours?
As college students we often get caught up in school, work and landing the perfect job. In doing this, we lose sight of some of the small, yet meaningful aspects of life.
The bottom line: don’t take life for granted. Live each moment as though it were your last; additionally, help others when they need you. You may never know when you will need them in return.