Surely, you have heard the words before; perhaps even out of your own lips. It is not uncommon to hear folks around us complain about some thing or another as not being fair. Fairness is often an abstract concept to us, I guess; I think we are sometimes careless in its application.

There has been a recent bout of young people dying around me. This sad circumstance is amplified by the tragically ironic fact that these same individuals, stolen so prematurely by death, were extraordinarily full of life. I don’t know, maybe it should come as no surprise that the brightest flames burn out the fastest. But in them I see model examples: met in life with the same kindness they exhibited toward others, and facing death with courage, dignity, and unwavering optimism.

In its procedurally unnatural cruelty, it is one thing I have found, in my estimation, to safely qualify as not being fair.

Let’s say you buy one of those clear plastic containers of potato salad at the grocery store, bring it home, and put it in the fridge. Fine. No big deal. Now let’s say you get around to eating it and notice the lid looks pushed out from the inside, as if something in the container expanded and, upon opening the container, you see little bubbles on the surface of the potato salad. STOP. Do not eat it.

Trust me.