When A Life Is Snatched Away;

On 13th July '13, the world was hit with the death of another star - this time, one of my favourite Glee actors, Cory Monteith.

When I first heard of his passing, I was in a state of disbelief. He was only 31 years old, and he still had his whole life ahead of him. He had everything - a loving family, a girlfriend who adored him, fans who worshiped him, and he's just .. gone. The last time news of a passing of a star hit me this hard, was when Michael Jackson died. Perhaps it's because I feel I know a semblance of him through his character in Glee, that his sudden departure hit me so hard. Perhaps it's because I really looked up to Lea and Cory's relationship. Like Lynn said:

'Look at the way they look at one another. Cory just stares into Lea like she's the prettiest lady in the world. The way Lea gazes into Cory's face like she's in a state of enchantment.There is just something about them - the way they stare or look at one another, the happiness on their face when the other person is around, the way Cory is so protective over Lea.'

Lea adored Cory, this video for example.

Lea on Cory, Marie Claire interview:

'No one knows me better than Cory. No one knows what it's been like to go through this more than he does. Feeling like you have that net underneath you allows you to jump higher and go farther. He makes me feel like I can do anything. For the first time in my life, I feel really, really settled and happy. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world.'

Love this photo, the way Cory's smiling is as though he's gonna burst out laughing anytime soon.

I always believed they were the real deal. What's worse, they were engaged and were about to say their vows in just 2 weeks. 

My heart goes out to Lea. To have someone you love taken away from you with no warning, that's the worst kind of loss possible. 

Which brings me to another reason why Cory's death hit me so hard. The suddenness of it, reminded me of how I lost 'uncle' in 2010. We weren't even blood related, but to me, he was a grandfather figure. A replacement of my paternal grandfather, whom I had never known. In 2010, he fell into a coma on a bus on the way back to KL from Johor. I was in prefects' camp then, and I didn't know what had happened until I left camp and my parents immediately brought me to the hospital, where I burst into tears and begged him to wake up. As I spoke, tears flowed down his cheek and I know he heard me. Believing he would wake up, I left without an 'I love you.' 

Not knowing that would be the last time I'd see him breathing. 

Till today, there are times when it crosses my mind and I'll be filled with this overwhelming sense of regret. If I could just turn back time to that day, I'd stay over at the hospital and just, be with him for his last few hours. I would have told him how much I loved him. If I could turn back time, I would have persuaded him to not go back to Johor and stay with us for those few months. So many things I would have done differently. 

After that, I made a decision to not take people for granted, to always show people around me that I love them. But I lose sight of that sometimes. It gets hard to do, and it's easier to be nonchalant.

Then incidents like this happen, and it's a huge blow.