are we all just hanging on by a string in this life?

[ProgMatinee]

A friend and former boss of mine before being promoted just died over the weekend. Its all quite shocking. 38 years old and seriously a larger than life personality and so much "life" to her. Possible heart attack. 38. She was literally the type of person that when she was on vacation you noticed a void in the office. She was going to be married in a few weeks and the day she passed she had a bridal shower and was about to have her bachelorette party.

the whole office is in shock. this is maybe the closest person to me I've ever had pass...I've been fortunate in that way.

really makes me reflect on how everyone of us could just be moments away from going.

 

[The Mike]

Yeah, it is scary how quickly it can all just go away. From the sounds of it though she lived life to the fullest and that is the best way to go about it.

 

[ProgMatinee]

I think she did live a fun life. She was so loud an boisterous that I have to admit occassionally being annoyed by it as she would distract the whole office with her booming voice and laughter 50 feet down the office. Seriously would not have picked her to be one to go so young.

 

[DarkArtist81]

Wow man... That really sucks. Sorry to hear that.

Yeah, life can be snatched away from us at any moment. My Mom died at 33. Suddenly without warning. So I have lived every day knowing that it could happen any time. The only way to live is to treat everyone as if it will be the last time you see them, and to enjoy every single day... even the bad ones.

 

[the vampire with soul]

yeah Life sucks sometime My little Cousin who was like my sister just pass last year from cancer and she was 24 with 2 little girls(3 and 5). She got married in the Hospital 3 day before she died. I use to think you can fight things like death but now I know when it your time it your time you just can't fight it

 

[Darth Cruel]

That is entirely too young. My father went at 55, my sister had a heart attack at 38 (she survived and is in much better heart health, now). It seems that people are largely indestructible until you get a close-to-home wake-up call.

I stopped living for the future and in the past soon after that. I don't plan for retirement or any other long-range plans like that. I effectively live for the day. I try to make my family's lives as enjoyable as possible (while still trying to make sure they become solid adults) and I have made sure they would be OK if I go early.

And I don't dwell on the posibility of going young. If it doesn't happen...then that just means I get to reflect on the good times WITH my kids for a while.

 

[Patterson]

I feel the same too.

Last week my friend Craig Hopson was killed in Afghanistan

I served with him in Iraq, really makes you realise how fickle life is.

 

[automaton]

i had a good friend of mine complain about a pain in his side... he went to the doctor, who transfered him to the hospital for tests... 2 days later he was gone. it was an issue with his liver. i am talking about a man who didn't drink or smoke and prior to this had a clean bill of health. he was in his early 30s.

it can be humbling... and awakening... but the best way to honor these friends is to live well and play hard... every day is the present, and as with any gift, don't take this present for granted.

 

[GrueSam]

are we all just hanging on by a string in this life?

Yes, yes we are.
And the older you get and the more family and friends around you pass away, you begin to not take your own life for granted so much.


I'm sorry about your friend, Prog.
I also just lost a friend a week before Con. 44 years old. Known him since I'm 18...

 

[Skiman]

I'm very sorry to hear about that Prog.

I know what you mean, I can remember two instances that this has really hit home, one just in the past and one just recently. Actually this weekend as well.

Story 1

The from the past was my best friend from 1st grade. We did everything together, grew up with mutual friends and went to two different schools from moving in between towns. It seemed that god was in the cards for us to be best friends when our parents at basically the same time moved to the same towns so we continued to be best friends without a hitch.

Anyways we ended going to college together and played baseball and basketball all the way from HS to the collegiate level. Started partying during college right before I transferred to the city, got a scholarship to another school and I decided that I was done with the local town or close to the local town that we went to college at. My friend Mike started down a road whenever I was leaving to the other school that ended up in him flunking out of school from too much partying . Well whenever I knew of this I tried to talk to my coach and convince him to have a walk on try out to the current ball team I was playing for. I thought to myself if I could get him to walk on and obtain a scholarship that his life would be right back on track and it would be just like old days. Mike never showed to practice that day. A few weeks later he inlisted in the service, I believe he did well in the service and was at a level of Staff Sgt. That year he was supposed to come home around August and was at the airport getting ready to board and I was invited to his welcome party on the 29th but he never made it. They called him back in for a short assignment that would only last a week and by Sept 3rd he was pronounced dead, in a bombing of his Hummer. My best friend from 1st grade was gone at age 27, never made it to even see 30.

 

[GrueSam]

 

[Skiman]

Story 2

This one is a little shorter and is a father of one my friends and good friend of my fiancee as well. My friend Ashley was always very brilliant and super sharp girl and a lot to handle if you are very intellectual yourself but her father was the same way and a very successful doctor. He was a doctor trying to find cure for cancer is how brilliant this man was if that gives you any idea and the apple does not fall far from the tree with her as well. Her father was her best friend basically because they had this special bond that no one would really understand, she would go to Star Wars conventions, Harry Potter movies, the Batman movies from the past to the current of the TDK.

She definitely is a pretty tom boy and which threw many of my guy friends off and is pratically the reason why me and her get along so well.

Her father thought he had a canker sore on his tongue and was having problems eating or it was bothering him while consuming foods. Her parents really didn't think nothing of it and I believe it was around March of this year that he was beginning to feel weird about this. Not really thinking much of it and trying ointments and other canker sore relief medicines he finally went to the doctor to get examined and have blood work done. Ironically he was diagnosed with tongue cancer and they believed that it was caused from him mixing chemicals in his lab during his research on trying to the cure that very same thing.

Well two month have gone by since then and things are progressively getting worse. They go through radiation treatment and the whole nine yards. He knew that it was his time and the cancer became so aggressive that it depreciated all the calcium from the bones. It was so rapid, so quick... Not only two months ago we thought that he was just going in to have a checkup on this canker sore that would not go away and now he is gone. A man that tried to help the rest of the world and cure this horrible disease is no more. Dr. Harrison passed away this last Saturday.

edit: well maybe not much shorter

 

[Skiman]

Much appreciated Sam, they were good ppl and went towards good causes and that's how I'll remember them!

 

[ProgMatinee]

sorry to hear about others losses. i don't think i'm going to try to look for explanations as there aren't any.

 

[azurepred]

reading these stories defn sucks, so thats why we should do the things we love to do cause ^^^^ like this happens out of nowhere with no explanantion. I have also been very fortunate to have very little death amongst people I know..........knock on wood

 

[Havok]

So sorry to hear about your loss Prog, it's such a shame how life can be cut so short sometimes.

The closest person to me that's passed away was my dad back in 2003, he was 63, which I think is still too young to go. He was someone I looked at and never thought he would ever go away, like he was Superman. Then when it happened it just tore a whole right through my heart, he was the one person I looked up to the most in my life. I don't want to say I loved him more than my mom or brother cause that's not the case, but when he was alive, he was the one I always talked to first for advice or whatever else was on my mind.

So I know what it's like to lose someone close to you and like everyone else has said, just try to live life to the fullest. It's really all we can do with whatever time we're given.

 

[Kratos]

Atropos cuts the Thread of Life when she deems someone's time has come
We are all subject to the Fates, As was my cousin
*RIP C.J 6th Aug 1984 - 11th Aug 2007

 

[OSCORP]

Yes we are.

I stopped living for the future and in the past soon after that. I don't plan for retirement or any other long-range plans like that. I effectively live for the day. I try to make my family's lives as enjoyable as possible (while still trying to make sure they become solid adults)
And I don't dwell on the possibility of going young. If it doesn't happen...then that just means I get to reflect on the good times WITH my kids for a while.

Same!

 

[Tyler]

One of my college friends died aged 18 of a brain anurism back in 1991.

Also another friend that I knew from about the age of five died of heart faliure out of the blue aged 30 in 2003. His younger brother aged 29 works with me and he almost died this year. Turns out he and his brother both had/have a heart defect. Luckily James, the one I work with now wears a monitor and is on medication to hopefully stop any further problems.