Yesterday morning my heart was so heavy with sadness, a continuation of how I felt when I went to bed the night before. A young police officer from my town was murdered in broad daylight yesterday afternoon by a man posing as another policeman. He was off-duty, and he was with his family at the time. In the blink of an eye, his wife is a widow, and his daughter is fatherless.

How senseless! And since the scumbag who shot him was subsequently killed, the reason–if there was one–will never be known. The world in which we live is so messed up.

In complete seriousness I often say that I’m glad I am the age I am (63). Sometimes I think this world is going to hell in a hand basket, and social media spreads the doom and gloom and hate and fear at lightning speed. Technological advancements can be a double-edged sword. I am on the downhill of life and I am okay with that.

My health is good and I stand a good chance of living for another decade or two, but yesterday’s incident jolts me into the stark reality that ‘today’ really is all we have. Today I can choose how I react to life…however it comes at me. It’s really the only thing I have control of.

Today I want my choices to be good ones, especially my choice of words. This officer answered a 911-call we made last year, and said something to a family member that ultimately changed the direction of more lives (for the better) than he will ever know. I am forever grateful to him.

R.I.P. Officer Phillip Meacham