Wakeup call

I found out yesterday that a law school classmate of mine passed away after fighting a hard battle against pancreatic cancer. We were not close friends, but we had a couple classes together and I remember her as being a happy, gregarious spirit always full of life and laughter. Even though we weren't close, I can't help but be shook up by her passing. She was my age. One day she was living a normal life, the next, she was diagnosed with cancer.

She's the fourth person I've known personally who lost the battle to cancer, and each time, I can't help but think: it's always the good, kind people that God takes away too early. I can only imagine how devastating it must be for her family to lose her, for her mother and father to lose a beloved daughter so young to a monster so egregious. It's always humbling, numbing and depressing to see a life full of promise cut short. I hope Erin is smiling somewhere in a better place.

Instead of having a funeral, her parents decided to bury her directly and have a celebration of her life next month. I like that - I think Erin would have liked that. She wasn't the sort of person to sit around moping or mourning, and I don't think she would have wanted that from her friends and family.

Her death is a wakeup call to all of us who knew her: life is so short, so unpredictable - you should treasure every minute you have with your loved ones and make the most out of every moment.