New Year's Eve

I know I'm a little early to be writing about December 31st but I finished Mitch Albom's The Time Keeper the story of Father Time. *** Spoiler Alert*** It is a twist on the old story of It's A Wonderful Life. It was a bit predictable but worth reading as a good reminder of what is truly important in life and the sin of trying to control our time here on earth. What was hard for me was his choice of his two characters who had their future's revealed to them while time was stopped in the middle of their act of suicide. The young teenage girl is a carbon copy of my own cousin who took her life at the age of 18. The second character an older gentleman with cancer was very much like my grandfather who was dying of cancer chose to take his life (cancer treatment in 1969 isn't what it is today). When I read the story I wondered if Mitch Albom had been reading my personal journals. I've always wondered if my loved ones could have known what life would be like after their deaths if they would have gone through with their actions. It's easy to write a story where there is a happy ending, but what about when there isn't? Our family story has been one of heartbreak, but also of triumph over tragedy. For those who suffer from this type of loss, it gets better, but the unanswerable question of why will still haunts.