Loss

Today, I asked my students to consider the theme of loss. We have been reading the book, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time and have been viewing the movie Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close as a parallel text. In preparation for their writing assignment over the movie, I wanted students to write about how characters in the movie deal with loss.

Some sad events transpired today, causing me to personally reflect on loss in our lives. One of Charlie's canine friends, Ollie, is no longer with us. He was struck by a car this morning. His human parents are obviously devastated, doing the best they can to overcome incredible, shocking loss. And we are also very sad. Ollie was a terrific dog. We will all miss spending time with Ollie, but Charlie will especially miss the mischief he and Ollie enjoyed together. 

Loss leads to remembrance. Through remembering, we grow as people. Our memories become part of our existence. Ollie is, and always will be, a part of our existence.