February 23, 2015
Losing is a Part of Life

We've all experienced loss in one form or another.  It is simply a part of life.  It might be the loss of a first baby tooth (traumatic more often for mom and dad than their young child), or losing a prized shooter in a game of marbles - how well I recall those days on the school playground when in the blink of an eye that perfect glass orb changed ownership.  

Or maybe losing that game of checkers or backgammon (or Candyland, as my oldest son certainly deplored doing!)  While it's not the end of the world to lose in a friendly competition, even recognizing that doesn't always take away the sting. 

Losing one's sense of direction can be a frightening, out-of-control situation.  How daunting to be caught unaware as a ground fog silently chokes the atmosphere, reducing your senses to near zilch.  The world can become a mighty small place in such an instance.

As we age we all face yet other losses:  friendships may wane and pass, loved ones die, or children grow up and move onward with their own lives.  We may even lose our hearing or once-acute eyesight. Or our hair. It's all a part of life.  

I find it important to acknowledge that with time comes loss of some sort or another. I can accept that after all.  

  

But what I cannot understand is another form of loss:  theft.  When a burglar pilfers and paws through one's personal belongings, the after effects can only lead to a dreaded sense of despair for the victim.  It's not only the loss of cherished possessions, both valued and intrinsically treasured.  No, a loss such as this is widely felt in the sense of the invasion of privacy, loss of safety, and in some cases, loss of dignity.

Yes, losing ones way is perfectly acceptable and expected now and then.  Losing our temper, a common occurrence.  Losing a competition now and then, well it's just going to happen. 

Let's just hope that's all that anyone is ever going to lose again.  Because loss by theft is simply too painful to fathom.