Zen Chill has a great post on how to cope with tragedy following recent world events. Here are the summary points and my comments in bold.
Release the past.
Whenever a tragedy or problem happens, the first thing that I try to remember to do is to release the past and be fully present in the moment. If not, there can a tendency to “drag” similar instances and circumstances from the past into the present, which only feels worse.

Instead, I try to follow this recommendation from A Course In Miracles:

“When your peace is threatened or disturbed in any …read more

The events of this week have really affected me, bringing back painful memories. However it has made me realise that I am alive

We understand how quickly life can be taken away so enjoy the moments you have
We understand the pain of loss so support and help others as a way of creating a legacy to remember
Humans are frail and humans are not perfect. Humans do inexplicable things however it is our imperfection that make us human. The world would be safer we if were all good and automatons but would it be better?

 I thought I would share my feelings today – rather strangely I am feeling lucky. I lost the love of my life to illness. It hurt, it still does however illness is part of nature, the human body is an amazing thing and sometimes it breaks down. I can understand that – at the same time as wishing it had not happened – but it is part of life. Even if you die of old age…your body is still failing.
The shootings killed people in their prime. They did not have to happen. The tragic part of the deaths is that …read more

The shocking events at Virginia Tech made me realise how the internet is changing the world of grief. We used to be on our own with a small group of friends – and it was hard to talk as much as you wanted because you were conscious of the emotional drain on the people around you. On the SeattlePi.com there is an article discussing the grief of the students and relatives.
Here is a snippet
“From blogging to cell phone video, technology has forever changed the way we process and communicate about tragedy.”  The topic was discussed at the University of Washington …read more