Normal

I attended my first candle light vigil for families who have lost loved ones to violence. To say the least, it was sad, heart wrenching. I sat there trying to figure out how I was supposed to feel. It's been almost six years since Cedric passed and by the grace of God I'm finally able to talk about him without totally breaking down. The goal of these vigils is to bring awareness to how many people are loosing their lives because of senseless/selfish crimes. I really couldn't find the words to describe how I was feeling during the ceremony, then a familiar face stepped to the mic and said it all, "this is not normal." We've grown accustomed to wearing t-shirts "in memory of", grown accustomed to gathering together to share our stories of loss, grown accustomed to releasing balloons in honor of, grown accustomed to rapping/rhyming about tragedy. It's not normal. It hurts to much. The grief and anger, it's not normal. The sad stories and heart ache, it's not normal. To all those who have experienced this pain, it's not normal but God is here in those "abnormal" moments. He's here to rock us to sleep when sleep escapes us. He's here to bring peace when there seems to be only chaos. He's here to ease our pain when it seems unbearable. While it may not feel normal to sit in a "seat of loss" I understand that sometimes we have to gather and share our stories in order to get back to normal. Things will never be the same but we can be sure that with God healing will come. TeamNormalAgain. Bblessedloveyou. Thanks to Compassionate Families for helping so many through their difficult time. Everyone handles loss differently but they bring the differences together. AMEN