A year ago yesterday my dude JayJay passed away.

And I won't ever understand why.
Medically, I guess I understand.
But reality, I don't.

See, JayJay was the epitomy of a cool kid. He was 17. He was playing basketball before school and his heart just stopped and he died. He was healthy, athletic, fun loving, worked for non-profit organizations, cared about the community, lived in an area where you would be thankful that other young men had him as a role model. Because of his race, gender, age, and area that he lived in, people kept asking me if he got shot. He didn't. If he had been shot, that would be another story. It would almost be "explained" in a sense....for lack of better words. But no, he had an un-diagnosed heart condition, and he just died. His funeral was the saddest thing I've ever witnessed. He was truly a good kid. I think about JayJay every day. The fact that someone so lively, so young, and so amazing can just die like that. Out of nowhere. With no signs, pretty much for no reason. That is the day I truly learned not to take anything in life for granted. June 23, 2008. It keeps me up at night sometimes. :/

But the point is, people just don't value what they have. Clearly, something like what happened to JayJay could happen to any of us. But still, people go around making enemies, holding grudges, and judging other people. See, I decided to change my life. No, It didn't happen the day, week or even month that JayJay died. It was gradual. It's a scary thought to know that someones life can end in just a heartbeat, and they could be gone forever with no signs that the end was near. Make sure you do like Alicia Keys says, and whenever your with loved ones, or even respected ones, treat each moment as if you'll never see them again!

I wanted to jot this down so I could store it somewhere. Thanks.

RIP JayJay 1/24/91-6/23/08