Saturday, December 13, 1997

Kentucky killings show life is unpredictable

By Joy Thompson / Knight-Ridder Newspapers

If there is any lesson to be learned from the recent tragedy at the high school in West Paducah, Ky., it's that life is unpredictable, so we should make the most of it.

I hesitated at first about writing about this incident. I didn't want to make the mistake some commentators will of trying to draw broad conclusions from it. Readers are probably familiar with the details, as the story has been aggressively reported in just about every news medium. A 14-year-old boy walks up to a group of students praying in a hall and proceeds to open fire. Eight students are hit, three of whom die from their wounds.

Rumors have proliferated: The suspect, Michael Carneal, was a member of a cult. He was a bitter, hate-filled atheist. He was on an anti-Christian rampage.

The law enforcement agencies investigating the crime have come up with a much different profile of the boy. Carneal, 14, is the son of a prominent attorney. He was a B-student with no known discipline problems. Carneal's family are regular church goers. A few months ago he knelt down at a church and professed his faith as a Christian.

McCracken County Sheriff Frank Augustus recently came up with the most sensible explanation of what happened last week at Heath High School when he said, "I've had no proof of any type of cult or atheists. ... All I've seen is a 14-year-old disturbed boy."

And there you have it: Another isolated, tragic incident orchestrated by a disturbed individual. Such crimes are rare. That is why when they do happen, they cause so much shock, consternation and speculation.

People will try to make more of this incident than they should. Some will argue the shooting illustrates that young people have too much accessibility to firearms. However, the weapon used in the Kentucky attack was stolen from an adult. Others will focus on the news that this kid was a fan of alternative rock music and lament how today's music lyrics have desensitized young people to violence. However, every kid who buys a rock or rap album, watches a violent movie or plays a violently graphic video game doesn't pick up a gun and start picking off his classmates.

There definitely is more to the story of Michael Carneal and the blood in the halls of Heath High, but I offer that the gist of that story is buried within Michael's head. We may never understand what he was thinking. And based on his addled response immediately following the shooting -- he said he was sorry three times -- I doubt even he knows.

So what are we to think about this tragedy -- and so close to the holiday season? For one, we can think like the parents of one of the teen-age girls who was killed. When Chuck and Gwen Hadley learned that their daughter had no chance of survival, they asked that the organs of her body be donated. An Indiana man received Nicole's lungs. A Kentucky man received her heart. Other organs were put to good use as well. A doctor who performed one of the transplants pointed out that the Hadleys lost a child but have been able to save several lives by donating her organs.

The Hadleys thought about helping others. They determined that their daughter would not suffer in vain. And in the most noble sense, Nicole lives on, in memory and in the bodies of the people who live because of her organs.

The Hadleys' selfless deed should lead us to ask ourselves, "Who can we give our hearts to? Who can we serve with our limbs -- our hands, arms, legs? To whom can we show our appreciation?" We don't have to wait until tragedy hits to do good.

The lesson of this tragedy for me -- the deeper meaning -- is that life is unpredictable and much too short. As a Christian, this tragedy helps me to understand the wisdom of the admonition found in Hebrews 3:12-13, "See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness."

Don't become cynical and hardened by the tragic, senseless events that are bound to occur in our society. Encourage one another. Appreciate one another. Value one another. As long as you have Today. That is the lesson to be learned.

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(Joy Thompson is an editorial writer for the Long Beach Press-Telegram. You can write to her at 604 Pine Ave., Long Beach, Calif. 90844.)

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(c) 1997, Press-Telegram (Long Beach, Calif.).

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