Dealing with death never gets easier, despite all the practice our family has gone through in the past few months; in a small number of weeks, the family had lost more than its fair share of relatives, friends and acquaintances. It's been hard handling the grief, especially when there was only little time between each loss, but we were getting there. Unfortunately, a dear friend of my sister was killed a few days ago... sudden death, cancer and surgery complications; I never thought I'd say it, but they were easier to understand; easier to come to grips with than knowing a man was behind a person passing away. It's bizarre seeing his face on local news sites and getting updates every other hour... death is supposed to be final, but it does not feel that way right now.

One of the few things that helped during these times was getting a new kitten. Poor Choi had a lot of health problems and was basically dying when I got my hands on her, but she is a fighter, and having someone depending on daily care helped me stay focused and not lose myself to depression. That and having amazing friends who were quick to offer support.

It's an awful feeling, being reminded that life is such a fragile thing.