When it's not just the news

There's a lot of static in modern day life
On a frequency that we just don't tune to
But we catch little snippets and sentences
But don't usually focus long enough to realise

That's how it is for the news for me
I'll catch a story every once in a while
But the rest of the time it's just static
Impersonal. Uninteresting. Irrelevant.

"Today a young man in Liverpool went....Kids today I swear....The average taxpayer can expect....Exciting change in number ten....9 Britons died today.....The church of England has radical new policies....We'll bring you more on this as it happens".

And usually, I don't listen in for more.
Usually, it means nothing to me
Usually I'm quite content to let it happen
Because usually it doesn't affect me.

Until I find out it does. That it does affect me.
That it shouldn't. That statistically, I was safe.
That numbers and percentages are so small, they could be ignored
But some days, the numbers just aren't small enough.

I had a friend die in the MH17 Malaysia airlines plane crash.
I wasn't his closest friend. Even though it hurts, I wont be hurting the most from this.
There are people right now who need prayers and sympathy more than me
And I am going to give the every ounce of it I can muster.

I still feel pain. I know he was a good guy. I knew his smile.
Suddenly the news, read and written by people I will never meet becomes *the* most relevant thing in my life.
"Why aren't they mentioning him?" "Why are they talking about him, let him be".
I've read more news today than I have in a long time.

Because today, those statistics they're talking about, aren't just statistics.
Those statistics mean way more than they ever normally could.
Those statistics mean close friends of mine are crying, are sad, need someone to listen to them.
Today those statistics mean a friend has died.

God bless. To all of you, but to one guy especially.