This has nothing to do with the outdoors, but everything to do with life. So please bear with me this one time. Thanks.

You may recall my March 2 blog entry where I wrote a short tribute about two local Maine men who were killed in the Iraq War just about a year ago: Larry Roukey and Chris Gelineau.

If you've been following the news this past week, you now know that Gelineau's wife Lavinia was murdered last weekend.

It's a tragedy compounded.

Lavinia worked for me several years ago as a USM intern. She was a delightful person, full of life, and we all loved her here in the office.

I am still haunted by the chance meeting with Lavinia in Hannaford's that fateful day late last April. She was white as a sheet and visibly shaken. She told me how she always received a long daily email from her husband Chris in Iraq, and that he was now more than 24 hours overdue. She was worried sick. I tried to comfort her and said something stupid like, "I'm sure everything will be fine."

But it wasn't.

She learned of her husband's death just an hour later.

And now Lavinia, young and full of life at 25, is gone.

My heart goes out to the Onitiu and Gelineau families and all those close to them.

Something's just not right here. There's too much loss going on. Too much.

Live! Appreciate every day and all those important to you. Tomorrow is not a given.