5 West Nursing

Flags fly half staff as we pay our respects to those who lost their lives in the Virginia Tech shootings. I heard of the shootings on TV while working with a patient Tuesday night, a day after it happened.

All throughout the night CNN airs the story of this unfortunate young man who apparently when on a shooting rampage at Virginia Tech where he was an English major. The shootings which took place almost 2 hours apart ended with 33 deaths, him included, the worst recorded in US history. This got me curious as most people who’ve heard of it. Couldn’t wait to get home to hit the news on the internet. What happened here?

As the story develops one thing is clear. This was a disturbed individual who apparently did not have any friends. The multimedia manifesto he left behind sheds some light into what may have triggered this horrible event. However, it is still unclear what really went through his head as he carried out his plan. Could this have been prevented?

Authorities state that there were “warning” signs and situations that led up to the event, however, no matter what people may say, there isn’t really any way to predict exactly what would happen. I know this for a fact since I’ve worked with psychiatric patients before. Even if the person wasn’t diagnosed as mentally ill, you still cannot predict what they would do. People can just snap… I guess there’s just so much a person can take. Regardless of what it is, we wouldn’t know what he had to endure all his life. And for the 32 people who’s lives were cut short by this terrible act, we could only wonder and ask ourselves, why?

Campus life will never be the same again. I remember back in college when all you worry about was mid-term exams and getting projects done on time. These days you have to think about security. I’m sure there will be nationwide security initiatives put in place to secure our colleges and universities.

As for the individuals who lost their lives that day, our condolences go out to their family and friends. We feel their loss. There are absolutely no words that can be said to comfort them in their time of grief. Lives full of promise cut short by an individual who’s life was apparently filled with pain. As we get to know more and more about the people who lost their lives that day, it starts to hit closer to home. We can relate, we know people that are like them… a senior just a few months before graduation, a father with 3 kids, a freshman who just started college and is looking forward to the future… the list goes on.

Life is too short to waste. Let’s make every moment count. We cannot go through life and say, “this only happens to other people.” I believe these are the signs of the times… and it’s only going to get worse. Still there is hope. We know Who is in control. Let’s remember the victims family and friends in our prayers.