A Life Ended Too Soon

I've started this post several times.  I've erased everything I've started wtih.  Multiple times.  I've sat and pondered how to begin.  I've stared at the screen.  How do you start the story about the end of a life?  Where do you begin- especially when it's a vibrant, energetic, beautiful 25 year old woman whose life was ended?  How do you begin the story when the whole thing probably happened in minutes, and may have taken less time that it's taken me to write about it already?

Sunday.  A day of rest.  A church day.  A family day.  Probably all the things Nick and Heidi expected when they went to bed on Saturday night.  But then all those things were shattered early Sunday morning.  The details are sketchy, and I've only heard bits and pieces and what the news has to say.  The Firkuses heard a noise in their house.  Nick went downstairs with a shotgun, Heidi followed.  They found a man attempting to break into their home.  That's the beginning of the story, but the middle is blurry, and the ending is clear.  Heidi was shot and died before the police arrived.  Nick was shot in the leg and has been released from the hospital.  

For Heidi, the day ended in perfection, and is just the beginning of an eternity of perfection.  She is now walking streets of gold with her Savior.  She may have anticipated praising him in worship on Sunday morning, but little did she now she would finish the day living in His arms and praising him forever.

For Nick and all those left behind, the day ended as the beginning of one long, horrible nightmare.  I have NO idea what he is feeling and experiencing right now.  I can't even begin to imagine how Nick goes on after April 25, 2010.  All I can do is pray, and ask that if you get a moment, that you do the same.  

Tim and I know Nick and Heidi from the church we went to in MN, Calvary.  They were a part of the youth group we worked with.  I spent A LOT of time with Heidi from the time she was in 7th grade all the way through 11th.  She was such a bright and beautiful girl.  She had a smile that can't be described.  I can't imagine how many lives she touched in her time here, and can't fathom how much she will be missed.

For those of you who don't live in MN, and haven't heard the story on the news, here's a link to the KARE 11 version of the story.