It's hard to explain how I feel about the sad events that occurred yesterday at the Holocaust museum in DC but I'm sure you understand when I say that some news stories just seem to affect me more than others. Stephen Johns was shot as he stood guard at work in Washington DC. It appears as though one of the oldest white supremacists in the world decided to take a gun to the museum and although I don't know what he had in mind...by the time he was finished, Johns was dead. The man who "greeted us every day with a wonderful smile" won't be there anymore and some nut who lived for 88 years is to blame.

You would expect that by the time a person got to be 88 years old he would have mellowed somewhat. I'm nowhere near that age and I've mellowed considerably over the years. Other than my rotten SOB of an ex husband, I can't think of anyone upon whom I would waste such negativity. But apparently, there are still people around who, by some strange defect of character, has enough hate for mankind that he has chosen to arbitrarily hate a fellow man simply for the color of his skin.

As if the hate itself wasn't bad enough, this old man chose to take a young man away from his family, causing unimaginable pain to people he had never met. How is that possible? How can one lone nut have the power to steal so much from so many?

The morning smile that greeted so many won't be there anymore and there's really not a damn thing that can be done to change that. So, what does a reasoned person take away from this? A tragedy of this magnitude cannot be a waste because that would make John's life a waste. All I can think of is this...the next time you see a familiar smile that makes you smile back, take a moment to appreciate it.