This tragedy grabbed me!

[Loup Solitaire]

Everyday the newspaper is filled with tragedy. Frequently, things like the scope of the Mumbai incident happen and a person can find oneself riveted to the news media for hours or days. But then at other times, one person passes in a freak accident and you barely know them or their accomplishments, but their demise leads you to discover them for the first time. This happened to me. Everyone over forty knows of Vanessa Redgrave. But I'm not certain how well her daughter, Natasha Richardson is known. At forty-five I felt she was a bit old to be taking up skiing for the first time.

I skied until I was into my fifties. Some people ski until they are into their sixties. It is a sport that once learned, it can be done easily. Learning the sport usually results in some sore muscles, maybe a sprain, worse case a broken bone if you venture onto an advanced trail before you are ready. But for someone to to suffer a fatal head injury on a beginner's trail is difficult to understand. Especially when they are escorted by their own private ski instructor. I can only think that it must have been fate that resulted in such a freak accident and then such a delay in treatment that this person would be allowed to die.

Here is a link to the New York Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/19/th...ml?_r=1&ref=us

Also, here is a link to an ABC news article: http://www.abcnews.go.com/Health/Min...7116273&page=1

While reading about her personal life, I found myself in an unusual state of admiration of the personal life and accomplishments of both Natsha Richardson and her husband Liam Neeson. This accident struck me as extremely tragic because I have a strong feeling that in addition to the accomplishments attributed to her, there was probably much more that she had yet to contribute as mother, wife, and actress.