Losing Jason

It was an accident, a senseless but preventable accident. Like most accidents, hindsight brings to light all the things that could have been done differently. But, it’s too late. He’s gone.

A young life taken because the steps to secure a gun in the home were not taken. Children are naturally curious. Tell them they can’t have or touch something and their curiosity level rises. Leave them unsupervised for a long period of time on a regular basis and they will touch the forbidden item. It’s the natural progression of child, curiosity, and accomplishment.

Jason’s life started out as a challenge. Born to a drug addicted prostitute with mental illness, he first few weeks of life were a battle of withdrawals, malnutrition, and the battle to simply survive. He almost didn’t make it, but he did.

Then became the battle of where he would live. His older brother had already been adopted…and by the grace of God the same family was able to adopt him too. After such a rough start he was blessed with a stable, loving, and healthy family.

Then 3 years ago that stable home because unstable and his parents filed for divorce. His next battle was who would he belong to? Both parents wanted him and his brothers, they all wanted to live with their dad, but the courts had other plans. So it was shared custody and bouncing back and forth between houses. And the made it work.

Until it didn’t. Because today his dad is at the funeral home making arrangements for Jason’s final resting place. Because his mom put herself before her children, before him, and didn’t take the responsibilities of parenting seriously (there’s a huge back story to this that I just can’t write about right now). Because his mom allowed her boyfriend to play with guns, to leave those guns around the house unattended, unsecured, and easily found by two curious young boys.

Jason died yesterday. He and his younger brother were playing with one of those guns. It was an accident. A tragedy. But reality is that he is gone.

So much could have been different. But, hindsight won’t bring him back. Now all we can do is pray for the family. Pray for the father who has to bury his son. Pray for the aunt who brought the children and the parents together to create the family.

Pray for understanding of why a young life, that started out as such a struggle, but one that had so much promise, was cut so short.

“For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.” 2 Corinthians 1:5

God bless, and be blessed.