But for the Grace of God....

It's strange how this Universe of ours has a way of every so often giving us a glimpse into ways things could be so much worse than the way we have it. Case in point: author Lynn Viehl, whose old blog StarLines was a favorite of mine until she shut it down and whose current blog, Paperback Writer, has become an equal favorite of mine now, received utterly devastating news this week about her son, who has a history of mental illness and criminal activity:

I always believed that one day I would learn that he had been killed while committing a crime. That was my worst fear.

This afternoon I learned that my worst fear didn't quite cover it.

My son Jeremy has been arrested and charged with murder, and evidently he has confessed to it and a second murder. He is presently in prison under a suicide watch.

Having read Lynn's blogs over the last three-plus years, I am not in the least bit surprised at the way she has decided to meet this horror head-on; nor could I admire her any more for that.

She follows up here and here. I offer my condolences to her and to the victims of her accused son's crimes.

(I actually learned of this because I read PJ's post about it before I headed over to Lynn's.)