How does one define a tragedy? Merriam-Webster defines it as "a very bad event that causes great sadness and often involves someone's death." Most would agree with this definition, but it is interesting how rarely this fully applies. Of course, we would call any unexpected death in the news or on social media a "tragedy," but there's not a deep connection with what happened. A slain soldier or fallen father will evoke our most basic sympathy without burrowing deep into our core emotions. It takes a personal element, one of family or community, to really understand what a tragedy is.
A recent event that happened within one mile of my home really opened my eyes. Scot Fitzgerald was a South Jacksonville police officer known by many — including my family. Just 12 hours before I was to return home from college, he was called out to an emergency that would be his last. An infant was in need of medical attention near my hometown of Murrayville, Illinois, about 10 miles from South Jacksonville. A small amount of confusion occurred when trying to determine the location of the person in need, and Officer Fitzgerald decided to turn around. No one will ever know why he didn't see the ambulance behind him that collided with the driver's side of his squad car killing him instantly. I read the story just minutes before seeing the marks on the road from the collision.
In the days that followed, more than 5,000 officers as well as the governor of Illinois, Bruce Rauner paid their respects to Officer Fitzgerald. It was truly painful to know that children were now without a father and a wife became a widow.
This made me realize a few things. Death is much more than just a news story or statistic. Tragedy is more than a word we use to label deaths of people "gone too soon." The end of someone's life is also the beginning of others' lives without them. Heartbreak and sadness overshadow the ceremony, and kind words are said by those who knew them. One word, tragedy, just isn't enough.
This realization forced me to reevaluate two other events in my life that involved death. One, the death of two teenagers, Morgan McKinnon and Leo Alfano. The other was a death of a co-worker, Bob Moss. In each of these two, I shared some common ground with each. The first, I shared age. The second, I shared duty. I fully believe that God has a reason for everything, but these are the toughest to swallow. Why wasn't it someone else? Why wasn't it me? Why do I deserve to go back home to my family when others aren't so lucky? It's a sobering, cold truth. Until we die, we won't know why things happen. We will not know the feelings of those who passed. We will know one thing, however: the pain.
Tragedy is losing who we love too soon. Tragedy is living without a major part of our lives and acting as though its normal. Tragedy isn't a statistic or a headline — it's human. Only when it hits our lives do we grasp what it means.
RIP - Bob Moss, Leo Alfano, Morgan McKinnon, Officer Scot Fitzgerald, and all of those who had their lives cut short.
