It's Not Fair...

You know, for those of us who have full-time jobs (or even part-time jobs), we may have a lot of different thoughts passing through our heads.  Some of us probably are thinking that we probably need a half dozen cups of coffee to get us through the morning.  Some probably dread the idea of having to file paperwork the whole day.  Some are trying to think of what plans they will make on the weekend.  And, some are constantly tossing discarded coffee cups left behind by customers who apparently don't know what a garbage can looks like.

But I'm sure that none of us ever go into our respective workplaces thinking that this is the last day that we will ever see again.

I'm only guessing that it never crossed the minds of 24-year-old Alison Parker and 27-year-old Adam Ward that when they reported for work on the morning of August 26, 2015 that it would be the last time that they would be seen alive.

Tragically, both of them died on the same day.  Gruesomely, their deaths were in front of a live television audience in Roanoke, Virginia.

I'm sure you've heard all of the details.  Alison Parker was doing a live remote, interviewing Vicki Gardner, a member of the chamber of commerce in Franklin County, Virginia.  Adam Ward was the cameraman.  The interview was supposed to be a light hearted piece for WDBJ's local morning show.  But at 6:46 am, all hell broke loose as a man approached the trio and shot at them.  Parker and Ward were pronounced dead at the scene, Gardner was seriously injured.

Perhaps what was the most disturbing thing about the whole tragedy was the fact that the gunman (who had been fired from the station, and who singled out Parker and Ward as the people responsible) posted a video on his personal Twitter account.

Extremely inexcusable and disgusting.

The gunman later took his own life, meaning that nobody will ever really know the truth behind what his motivation was, or why he felt compelled to do such a thing.

The only thing that I know for sure is...this was senseless.  Absolutely senseless.  And you know, for this to be planned so meticulously by the person who pulled the trigger - timing the shooting so that it would actually be seen on live television.  What the heck was going through his mind?  Again, with him taking his own life, we'll never know.

Instead, this man used his own pain and turned it into hatred and rage, and as a result, he has not only taken two lives, but destroyed thousands of others.  Both Parker and Ward were reportedly well liked and very respected at their jobs and were considered consummate professionals.  Both were very happy in their personal lives and had fallen in love.  They had their whole lives ahead of them, and in an instant, all of those dreams and future goals were taken away from them.

It's just not fair.  It sucks.

My thoughts go out to the families of Alison Parker and Adam Ward during this difficult time.  Nobody should EVER lose anyone in such a horrific way.