Blindsided

"Bad things happen to good people all of the time."

I just said that to Mark two days ago after we were in a car accident and his car was pretty badly damaged. He reminded me of it today when he gave me some bad news.

Let me start by admitting, I don't believe in Karma. I don't think that things I do add or subtract points from some giant cosmic scoreboard. However, I do believe in using events in my life as wake-up calls.

I try to be a good person, but I'm not always very good at it. I often fail in trying to treat other people the way that I want to be treated. I have a hard time remembering that when someone is in a bad mood - either just this moment or perpetually - that they likely have something else going on that has put them in that place. I forget about being sensitive, understanding and gentle even though I expect people to display those characteristics toward me.

I just found out that an acquaintance of mine died suddenly. I didn't know her very well and at least a few of my interactions with her seemed to indicate to me that she was at least a little surly. That didn't make her unlikable, just difficult to deal with on occasion. She was good at what she did and people respected her work. Now she's gone and I'm a little shell-shocked. I should have been nicer, more helpful, more... something.