The Other Side Of Seeing Death On Another Scale

On Oct. 29th this past week, a friend/little brother to my fiance and her best friend had his life cut short under tragic circumstances that ended in a horrible mistake. I only met this young man a couple times but to Holly and her bestie Brit, they knew him like he was family. Although he was only 24 when his life ended, he was beyond his years when he was alive. He was a former marine that had a heart many of us wish we could have. He had his flaws like the rest of us, but if he liked you, you knew about it because apparently he expressed it well.

Death wasn't always easy with me especially with people I cared about. I've lost friends to suicide, family members that were in later stages of life and a few that I was emotionally invested in. However in this circumstance, it was particularly tough to handle more than usual because at this fallen marine's funeral, I felt the pain around me everywhere; especially those who loved him the most. It wasn't just the pain of losing him or honoring a soldier or even emotional attachment, it was the love that became broken beyond what I had expected. I hugged my girl, her friend and her friend's mother so hard that I didn't want to let go, it was that powerful, not just because I knew he was gone but to give them the love they needed when it meant the most.

What really took me back more than anything was actually viewing him in that casket. I have sprinkled my step father's ashes and I carried my aunt's casket with men in my family but never up until this funeral have seen a body that was no longer alive in front of me. It was surreal and full of emotion I never experienced before. He was in full uniform and a trimmed beard and was ready to be at peace. I'm not a religious man and don't exactly believe what happens when someone dies in the form of religious beliefs; I do however wish to feel that when someone is gone, they go to a place in a time where they were the happiest and live out the rest of time being in that state. I will never get that image of him out of my mind for the rest of my life. Although he is forever asleep, his love and heart are with the people that brought joy to their lives and feeling so passionately what he gave back to them even in death. 

 It's one thing to see and watch other people die in the movies and being moved or unmoved regardless of how it is played out, it's a whole other realm when you see it literally feet away in real life. It really puts you in a state of emotions that are very hard to comprehend and thinking many things all at once. At one glance, I saw a man who was a fallen soldier and did the best to his abilities serving his country in the time he had; on the other side of the coin, I saw a boy he had more left to give in this world and had many opportunities to grow further as a man especially making amends with those he left behind. Like I said, I only met him a couple of times but I KNEW who he was by the people that talked about him. Rest In Peace Mitchell.