Dealing With Unexpected Death

Death is always difficult to deal with, but the unexpected death of a young person is more difficult to handle for many. Death that results from violence is even worse, and multiple deaths resulting from violence even worse still. The massacre at Columbine High School affected people around the globe. For the family of Cassie Bernall, the violence was extremely personal. Their daughter was shot at close range, dying after she was asked if she believed in God, and she answered "yes."

The family members heard about the shootings and didn't know if their son and daughter were safe. After a few hours they discovered their son, Chris, was safe, but they hadn't heard anything about their daughter Cassie. The wait was agonizing as kids from the school were bused in to parents. By the end of the day, Cassie still hadn't shown up, but...