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Random acts of kindness

Contributed by: Katherine Jerome on 9/30/2006

Wednesday, my husband and I along with our son, daughter in law, and our baby grandaughter packed a picnic and other essentials for a trip down 285 to view the aspen. Camera in hand, my intention was to write a story called "That's Hot: Aspen"
On the way back we planned to stop in Bailey and Shawnee to visit friends and family and show off the baby on her first trip to the mountains.

We parked first on the top of Kenosha Pass, and my husband and I told our kids the story about our first date that had taken place on that very spot. We laughed about where we sat, and what we talked about. I didn't take any pictures thinking that I would have plenty of time once we got to Jefferson.

Driving down the highway, we decided to have lunch in Fairplay and aborted the picnic plan to keep the baby happy. Within minutes of continuing our trip, 3 or 4 groups of unmarked police cars came screaming by us in the opposite direction, with at least 6 cars in each group. One car was in such a hurry that he veered into the wrong lane, and almost hit the car in front of us head on. Our son, who is a paramedic, thinking out loud said something like "there's probably some big deal going on at the high school."

We went into the Brown Burro Cafe in Fairplay, whose parking lot adjoins the school yard where kids were out playing ball, swinging, and just being kids. My husband got the dog out and fastened his leash and noticed kids streaming back into the school. Meandering over to the fence, a police officer approached and told him not to come any further, as this was now a restricted area. Inside the restaurant, we ordered our lunch and got the baby settled just as there was an announcement that the highway was closed at Kenosha, and anyone needing to go to Denver should travel via Hoosier Pass through Breckenridge to I-70.

We knew there was a lockdown at Platte Canyon High School, and that all outlying schools were taking the same precautions, but other details were not available at that time. My father in law called a bit later, and gave us more specifics about what was going on. By the time we got home it was almost 3:00 and the television was on continuous live news reports.

We found out later in the evening from family in Shawnee that it was Emily Keyes that had died.

The news brought back some unpleasant memories. My emotions still fresh from the Second Wind teen suicide prevention event on Sunday. I have had the unreal experience to find the lifeless body of a teenager, who had taken his own life, and stand next to the parents as they were told that their child was gone.

My heart was breaking for Emily's family. I wanted to sob and scream, but I just stood there shaking not knowing what to do. All I could think about was how they must be feeling at that exact moment. I could imagine them replaying every detail of their day, thinking that magically, somehow things could have turned out different. That powerless feeling, especially when it comes to your children would be more than one could bear.

For me, to try and take back a bit of that power, I am committed to performing random acts of kindness. That is what Emily's family wants. That is what Emily would have wanted.

You just never know when it might make all the difference in the world.


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CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION

Katherine Jerome

Lakewood , CO

Katherine Jerome has posted 34 stories and 168 comments since joining on 8/25/2006. Katherine Jerome 's average story rating is 4.78.
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