Unimaginable Loss and Grief

Christmas, for some, brings with it a bagful of emotions. The past couple of days I felt myself falling into a 'blue' mood. Yesterday, I was abruptly jolted out from the hole into which I found myself falling. I realised just how minor and petty my concerns were compared to those of others.

A family at Pullenvale, a western suburb of Brisbane, suffered the loss of two sons and the hospitalization of a third from a tragic car accident. Seventeen-year old Daniel East and his twelve-year old brother Toby lost their young lives when the car in which they were travelling veered off the road, crashing into a power pole. Younger brother, Ruben is in hospital with two broken legs. A fourth brother, fifteen-year old Jordan, opted to stay at home as he'd been playing cricket all day. The brothers had been on a Christmas shopping excursion to Indooroopilly Shopping Centre and were returning home. Daniel had been allowed to take the family car.

The driver, Daniel had only had his licence for a few weeks. Daniel's concerned father, upon him gaining his licence, took him to the Brisbane Magistrate's Court for day to sit in to watch traffic-related cases of misery. Daniel was shown a graphic DVD of car crash footage in an attempt to get the message home. Concerned parents doing the right thing for their son. Daniel was rarely allowed to drive alone, but as this was to be a quick trip to the shopping centre, his brothers were allowed to go with him. Two loved sons will not be sharing Christmas with their family this year...or any Christmas hereafter. Daniel, the eldest son, finished Year 12 a few weeks ago. He had won a scholarship to attend Army Officers' College in Canberra, intending to begin his studies next year.

It is impossible for me to imagine what this family is going through. The pain they are experiencing is indescribable. Their grief...it makes me shudder to think about it. I shed tears as I watched the segment on the news last night. I berated myself over my silly self-concerns.