Notre-Dame Cathedral

I'm in shock. I've just seen pictures of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. It looks as though it is being absolutely decimated by a fire. The pictures are unbelievable.

And though I have never been there, never had a personal connection, and have never had a visceral relationship with any building, I find myself looking at these photos with a sense of... loss. And with that I am back to my previous post focusing on that particular word...

I'm viewing this gorgeous architecture and a house of worship as it is being torn apart by flames, and I am mourning the historical, cultural, and spiritual relevance for the world. And I'm feeling a great sadness as it relates to the political overtones du jour. The state of our world, the distrust and abuse of our neighbours, the unjust acts all across the world. The fall of a beautiful building has me thinking about the big themes in life and death. 

I was just on Twitter and author (and grieving parent) Ben Brooks-Dutton (@benbrooksdutton) just said it perfectly: Whenever I see someone or something destroyed by something that surely didn't need to happen, these two words - what if- are always the first to come to my mind. The loss of beauty and preciousness is heartbreaking. 

what if. 

And maybe those two words are why death is so hard for humans? We circulate in the world of 'what if'. As professionals, it can be even more unpredictable. What if I had called that donor a day earlier? What if I had said something differently? What if I was more open to sit in silence, acknowledging that it cannot make anything better?

What if...