Today April 28th is the anniversary of a little girl’s death who fell from a window aged 3. She was one of the most lively, confident children I’ve ever looked after. She would skip down the street, say hello to everyone and have a big smile on her face. She was simply a fearless child, I remember going ski-ing in France and taking her speeding down a steep slope, she simply loved it.
She also loved her brothers and had just gained a new baby brother. On this day we were going to celebrate another 3 year old’s birthday. Sarah or Pooky John as her parents affectionately called her, had specially made a birthday card and signed it too. The card never reached who it was intended for, we never made it to that party, we never helped blow the candles out and her little brothers never saw her again, after that fateful day many years ago.
We only have one life, we must live it to the full, appreciate every moment we have with loved ones, even if they drive you mad, things are usually not that bad! To tell a father of the ordeal that day when he was a plane journey away was one of the hardest things I had to do in my career.
Children are precious and bring tremendous joy and even when we’ve had sleepless nights and they are driving us insane, things really often aren’t so terrible. Take a moment to reflect what is it that makes your baby or child so special and what are you thankful for today?
You are not alone, if you have lost a child or a parent, it’s hard to come to terms with but you will recover from the death, gradually your faith will return and the sadness will fade but never leave you.