A year of anguish, a lifetime of loss

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AS Eye write this, news is coming in over international media channels on the recovery of bodies from the Karimata Strait in the Java Sea, where AirAsia Indonesia flight QZ8501 went down in a storm.

Not many realised that while the search and rescue operations continued for those on board that aircraft, another plane had crashed into the Tasman Peninsula on Dec 30 – this time a Cessna 172 with a pilot and photographer who were covering the Sydney-to-Hobart Yatch Race.

Year 2014 proved to be one of anguish and distraught for many.Senseless killings, wars, natural disasters and tragedies ruled the headlines for most of the year.

It was an especially bad year for aviation, in spite of statistics by aviation consulting firms indicating that it had been a relatively ‘safe’ year with only 111 (and now 112) plane crash incidents around the world. The total number of lives lost with these 112 crashes came up to 1,322 people, including children.

But who cares about what these statistics say. Never have we Malaysians experienced so much loss in a year.Three planes full of people, including children of different nationalities but still, all part of humanity.

Never mind that that 8501 is an ‘Indonesian plane’, as the media put it.  AirAsia very much has its roots in Malaysia. The company and its CEO are very much a part of us Malaysians, just as MAS is very much a part of our lives.

Eye cannot imagine the anguish and despair that the families and friends of those aboard MH370, MH17 and QZ8501 would have to endure for a lifetime.

The worst thing about any disaster is that there is always bound to be some heartless, attention-seeking idiots eyeing to politicise the incidents and commenting about how things were handled in the aftermath.

Then there are the floods that have washed away as many as 220,000 dreams to usher in the New Year with their families within the safety of their own homes in Peninsular Malaysia.  Well, not only in the peninsula, but here in several villages in Baram and Sibu as well.

As Eye write this, news reports indicate that the number of casualties from the floods in the peninsula has reached 10, and that fresh flooding may take place.

While Malaysians generally come together in solidarity to lend a hand and reach out to the victims, politics still come into play.  It became an issue of who were the big shots in the country; who went wading around in flood waters, and who were away on holidays.

Whatever the few heartless attention-seekers are out to achieve by politicising the tragedies and events that unfolded over the last year, Eye believe that these are the people who are measly souls, and have no other aim in life except to make everyone else miserable.

Of course there are lessons to be learned from these tragedies. The floods and landslides in the peninsula, for example, teach us not to take Mother Nature for granted, the importance of forest cover and the price that we pay for greed and poorly planned development.

As for the plane incidents, well, the Eye is no aviation expert, but these tragedies have certainly taught us that while we cannot avoid flying and taking journeys, we should never take the ones we love for granted – lest we never see them again.

The healing for the families and friends of those who lost their lives will take a long time. Some may never find closure, but a few others will carry on and persevere.  For those who believe in the higher power, they will find solace in prayers.

It is easy for bystanders and counselors to tell them that they would be alright in time and that they would move on with their lives.

But Eye can only imagine the despair and distraught that these families will somehow have to carry with them for a lifetime.

Even in carrying on with their lives and doing all they can to make the ones that they had lost proud in spirit, there will always be a certain void – a certain sense of loss that will never go away.

On a personal note, the Eye too lost an important loved one in the year that was and while not in a tragedy, it is still a distressing experience.  Eye will never be able to relate fully to the loss of a loved one in a tragic event, but the news of lives lost in the place crash, and tragic drowning in floods pretty much added on to the despair.

Many of us are able to detach ourselves from these people, simply because we do not know them. We offer them our thoughts and condolences, and we then move on with our own lives, unaffected.

We forget that even after years, there are families still struggling to cope with their loss and to rebuild their lives.We forget that they have to deal with a lifetime of a tragic loss. Soon, for many of us unrelated to the victims, these incidences become politicised again, or eventually become conversational topics at the kopitiam – nothing more.

And so, Eye ask you, would it be too much to ask if we could all add to our New Year’s resolution, to occasionally offer a prayer or two for all those in need of comfort, as well as for those without a roof over their heads and without food on the table, around the world?

Here’s wishing all a blessed year ahead.

Comments can reach the writer via [email protected].