Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Justin Priest dies in car crash, oh wait… sorry!



http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-29578331

The above article recounts the events leading up to the moment where Justin’s parents were crying and thanking the Lord on a crisp Alaskan morning. This so called ‘miracle’ was shown after the parents learned that it was not  their son who had been killed in a car crash, but indeed another man with the same name, but a different birthday. This event should, under no circumstances, be considered a miracle. The fact that Karen and Joy Priest did not lose their son is obviously a joyous outcome to what had initially started as the worst day of their lives. This story, however touching, is still tragic. Even though Karen and Joy may not be having the worst day of their lives, another family has still lost a son, a brother or a husband. To call such an event a miracle is only part of human nature. Of course, no one wants it to be their son who has died, but the tragedy is not made any better in the grand scheme of things if another son is killed in Justin’s stead. The article is a real life parallel to Kate Chopin’s “Story of an Hour,” where Mrs Mallard’s husband is reportedly killed in a train accident; however her husband is in fact alive and well. The article only illustrates the firm idea in human nature; “Better him than me,” a sad but true statement.

4 comments:

  1. If this incident isn't a miracle, how would you describe a true miracle?

    ReplyDelete
  2. a sad but true insight into human nature. Why does the family not mourn for the loss of the other family?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Interesting parallel to "The Story of an Hour." I agree that this is in no way a miracle.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I really like the connection to the short story, "Story of an Hour." I agree that it is still a tragedy, even though the original boy who was thought to be dead is actually alive. I also believe that even saying that the boy is dead is bad enough. This causes harm to the family wthout real cause. I am sure the family was unhappy with this mistake, even though I'm sure they are grateful to know their son is alive.

    ReplyDelete