One Life’s Affect

As I sat watching Avery last night in her first school play, I could not help looking about wondering what seats were empty because of the death of one of her fellow cast members. A young beautiful 16 year old girl had been on life support for a week before she passed. The car she was riding in the week before was hit by a car that was trying to beat a red light. There was only the beautiful girl and a young teenage boy in the car. The boy sustained no injuries and the other car, full of teenagers (that hit them), were all fine as well. Beautiful Girl was hit like a target by their car.

 I could not help but wonder how many lives had been affected. The director had spoken with the family and it was decided that Beautiful Girl would want the show to go on. I knew that Beautiful Girl's best friend was in the play and I watched her as she performed in the show as well. The friend held it together until the curtain call and then I watched as the cast dissolved one by one. That was just one group of people that Beautiful Girl had touched and I am sure there are many, many more.

 Beautiful Girl was in our home just a few weeks ago at the beginning of December. She was working with Aly on a dance for a song they were doing with a group of theatre kids at their Thespian Festival. The group ended up winning an Excellent award. It was a high point for all of the kids. More lives that were touched by Beautiful Girl.

 I am an outsider I do not claim to know her or her family or do I have any concept of what they might be going through right now. However, I do know that as an outsider I can see a small swatch of the lives she has touched and I am astounded one young person can affect so many lives. It never crosses our minds when we step out into the world each day that we are molding and forming other lives around us. We just head out plunging in hoping to get through the day. What if today when we head out the door we look at each face a little closer and smile a little more? What if we concentrate for just one day on how we affect the lives of other's and less on the tasks we must accomplish? I believe that our vision of ourselves would change. Instead of the lonely and selfish world we are so use to being a part of we would see our ripple. The ripple we create in our world's pond each time we step out into the day. I feel like I want to recognize the ripple now instead of having someone wonder over the empty seats when I am gone. I want to relearn how to step into my life and participate as Beautiful Girl did sharing and loving and living.

 My baby girl made her ripple last night as she stepped out on her own and preformed in the school play. She started her ripple and I can see it will not be her last. She had laughs and hugs and joy surrounding her at the end of the night and I knew that she too will now carry forward Beautiful Girl's gift into the world. This is the circle of life, a beautiful life indeed.