I felt compelled to put down some of my thoughts and post them here.
I hope they make sense to those of you who take the time to read them.
On Wednesday last, after I dropped some books off at the Sarnia library, I then walked along Christina Street to the Bayside Mall entrance at Lochiel Street, where I had some business to attend to.
Whilst walking along that downtown street, I could not help but be aware that I was passing along the same route, albeit in reverse, that Noelle Paquette was reported to have taken, on the early hours of January 1st, after she left the New Years Eve party that, it has been said, she attended.
The mixture of emotions and questions that kept running through my head, as I walked along, all seemed so jumbled up. The where, the why? The anger
mixed in with disbelief,( I guess, because my mind wanted to shut this horror out) that such an unbelievably evil situation, had been spawned somewhere along this very route I was now traveling?
So many questions sprang into my mind that will probably never be fully answered?
So many What ifs
the
If onlys
. and that ever present thought that has been in my head, since the story unfolded
. Why?
I felt a great sadness as I walked along, and that feeling, I believe is shared by the other citizens of this normally normal little city, people who like myself are in shock and disbelief that such a thing could take place in our community.
This is the street, where on warm Friday evenings in summer, the folks of this city stop and chat with old friends they meet, as they wander through the weekly Art-Walk displays and share in lighthearted fun.
This too is where the annual Santa Claus parade delights the children, their parents and grand-parents of our city, as it passes along with the colourful floats, filled with beaming children, who are eagerly waving at their friends and families. A time for the citizenry, who are usually bundled up and stamp their feet against the cold night air, as they enjoy the brightly lit parade vehicles and listen to and watch the marching bands blare out their joyful seasonal tunes.
And along this, the old downtown main street, is where the Royal Canadian Legion members, the Veterans, Police service, Fire services, the local Militia members, Military Cadets Little Brownies and Girl Guides, Boy Scouts, Cubs and Beavers, along with the many wreath carriers who in the annual Remembrance Day Parade, march solemnly to the Cenotaph in honour of those who made the ultimate sacrifice for the benefit of their fellow citizens.
It is so very sad that this part of our town will be remembered as the area where a more sinister event started out.
I post these thoughts to honour the memory of Noelle Paquette, a young woman whom I never met but I admire and respect, for all the selfless deeds that she carried out during her short life time, all of which show an ultimate concern, for the wefare of the children and adults she came in contact with and for the love for her family, whom she obviously cared for so very much.