Heart sick

Normally I'm all funny funny, jokey jokey. But today is not one of those days. I've been following the brave journey of Abby Sunderland since the 16 year old decided to try to circumnavigate the world a few months ago. This morning Abby manually activated her EPIRB satellite positioning device indicating she was in need of rescue. EPIRB's go off 1 of 2 ways; when they are submersed in water, or when manually activated. So if her ship sank, the EPIRB would go off automatically when it hit the water- an amazing safety feature if the sailor is incapable of setting it off manually. She is in the middle of the Indian Ocean. The nearest ship with the nearest help was 400 miles away. Since Abby set the EPIRB off manually, that's actually a good sign- she had the fortitude and the capabilities to activate the device herself. But as of 9:30 tonight, no one has gotten to her yet. She is just a girl, alone, lost in the ocean.

What upset me so much about the whole situation were the comments some "people" are leaving on the news sites reporting Abby's distress. I put people in quotations because in my mind, they aren't acting like humans, more like ignorant, evil, barbarians. For the most part, they are saying things like "stupid girl," "stupid parents," "stupid government," not sure exactly how the government got involved- but ok. The one that got me, really took my breath away at the absolute awfulness was someone said they hoped Abby was "kidnapped and brutally raped by Somali pirates."

This girl was living out her dream! Her parents helped her the best they could by preparing her and supporting her. Their older son had successfully completed the trip when he was a teenager. And honestly, they only would have been able to hold her back another two years, at 18 she would have done it with our without her parents blessing (at least I would have.) Abby is a hero, she took the initiative to fulfill a dream, follow in her brothers footsteps AND become one of- if not the youngest- females to circumnavigate the world. Not many people can say they've ever done that, had a dream or a lofty goal and actually followed through with it. If the absolute worst happens and she doesn't make it, at least those that know her can take comfort in the knowledge that she died doing what she loved and while trying to accomplish something few ever have. If she survives, and God willing, she will- I would be willing to bet this young lady tries her quest again in the future.

I know how difficult it is for me, a complete stranger who has only read about Abby thanks to Yahoo News, to read of her distress. I could not even begin to imagine what is running through the minds of her family or friends. Or of Abby herself. I don't know what's happening in the Indian Ocean right now, all I know is my thoughts and prayers are with Abby and her family tonight.