Tragedy

At the monthly lunch today, I was hit in the pit of the stomach by news of people in town. They lived near us. Our daughters played together.

It seems the young woman, same age as my younger daughter, was leaving her sister's house with children already in the car. As she stood outside, her ex-boyfriend drove up and she went out to talk with him. They had dated for four months and she broke up with him a week before.  They talked, were not loud or argumentative. As she turned to walk back to her sister, he shot her in the back of the head from close range. Then, he drove one block, parked, and shot himself. Now, this information does not jive with the newspaper account. However, a close relative told me this account.

My younger daughter, third child, played with this girl when they were little. They were in the same grade.

The father of the girl killed sat next to me. It was awkward, to say the least. This is the kind of thing a mother's heart worries about when daughters are older. From what everyone knew of this guy, he was okay and seemingly incapable of this horrific act. So, two children are motherless. Four children, hers and her sister's two children are traumatized.

HERE is the local paper's report. It was also reported in Nashville and Atlanta news, among others.

At the lunch the men of the church grilled hamburgers and hot dogs for the Fourth. I ate two hot dogs, slaw, lettuce leaf and huge slice of tomato. I picked up the lettuce leaf with the tomato on it and just bit from it. This was not a bit messy, something I anticipated. Toward the end of the tomato and lettuce, it was sort of folded. Delicious food. I ate too much watermelon and had a slice of chocolate, un-iced bundt cake with chocolate chips in it.

I am going to the funeral. My friend who is a relative of the girl said we would have a meal afterwards at the church, furnished by the church. We do that in the South, but it's usually potluck.

While I was looking for the obituary, I discovered a long-time friend's husband died. Well, I knew his sisters and son well, too. I have seen his wife three or four times and just said "hello" as we passed in WM.  He was four years older than I. Both of these people died too young.