When Really Sad Events Occur…

I learned the sad news about the death of one of my high school classmate last Thursday. She was 39 years old and the mother of 3 young daughters. She was also a girlfriend and partner in life with the father of her children (not married but it means the same thing in Quebec), a daughter, a sister, a friend, a niece, and a co-worker. For me, she was a friend from high school. Her name was Geneviève Marsot.

After high school, I moved from my hometown to the big city, Montreal, and I didn’t see Geneviève for probably a decade. I met her in a boutique while shopping. She was the same as I remember: warm, endearing, beautiful (both inside and out), sweet and full of life. Irresistible in a way. As vibrant as she used to be on a soccer or volleyball field where we had so much fun. Unfortunately, our roads didn’t cross again after that short encounter but I always had nice thoughts of Geneviève. In 2005, 20 years after our graduation, I couldn’t make the high school reunion due to a family obligation. There are few people I would have liked to meet there and Geneviève was among those people. I am sorry I didn’t have the chance to see her then. She was in my thoughts and in my heart despite the distance Rimouski- Montreal, and later Montreal- New York and despite the fact that our roads barely crossed since the end of high school. The last journey she’s just started won’t change that and she’ll always be in my thoughts and my heart.

Rest in peace beautiful Geneviève.

For me, a sad event like the death of Geneviève is an opportunity to re-commit to my own life, to make sure I am fully living and appreciating every moment of my life. I understand that life is not always easy but I also understand that everything is impermanent: emotions, thoughts, and physical matter. The only thing that exists is now. The book ‘A New Earth’ by Tolle teaches that. It is an amazing book that helps me to make peace with sad event like this one. I wrote a post about the book few weeks ago. Click here if you want more information.

Until next week,
Lots of Fun, Joy and Peace for you!

Cathy

PS: It is not necessarily easy to wish fun and joy when our heart feels sadness but I still wish it for everyone reading this post including myself.


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