Live Today Like it was Your Last

If you knew there was no tomorrow, would you spend today playing video games?  Would you be selfish toward a loved one or say an unkind word to someone?  We never know how much time we have to make a difference or a positive contribution in this world, and now even my children have lived long enough to know that death can strike at any age. (Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time for them to realize this).

Two days ago the cover story in our local newspaper revealed the tragic fact that someone we knew well had been killed instantly in a tragic accident. His name was Sudahkar  McDevitt –McCann, but everyone called him Sudha.  We met the McDevitt-McCann family a year or so after moving to New Hampshire, although being one of the only other locally homeschooled families in the immediate area, we had heard of them long before this.  Sudha and his sister Manju, both born in India and adopted by parents Jim and Dot when infants. They had been given a loving home and brilliant education which included a classical music foundation that had them all playing violin, viola and cello on a professional level.  In fact, Dot, Sudha and Manju had formed a string trio called Polaris, which performed locally.  We hired them several years ago to play for a Christmas party we gave for the Jackson townspeople,  and their music transported us all back to the days of Washington Irving’s Christmas, with bedecked halls, a crackling fire and good company. It will always be a crystalized moment in time for me of heaven on earth, made even more special by the McDevitt-McCann family’s beautiful music.

Our daughter Zia knew Sudha and Manju from the teen library book group in Jackson, a tiny, close knit group of students who met monthly to discuss books and life. Zia was close to Sidha, and considered him one of her close friends here. They spent quite a bit of time hanging out and talking outside of ‘library’ time. She is devastated.

We just never know what today will bring. Twenty minutes before Sudha’s tragic accident, four friends were together after work, enjoying summer vacation while driving in a car and having fun in each other’s company. Moments later, one was dead, one was clinging to life and another was in custody, charged with serious crimes resulting from negligence while driving. Lives can change in a single instant. We need to make each one count.