today

My period started, I am possibly moving (again), it's Ash Wednesday, and I'm absolutely haunted by this article aboiut Imette St. Guillen, the 24 year old student who was horribly raped and murdered. She hung out in the same area as I do and....24 years old! I keep thinking, that could have been me. And how it happened is a mystery: probably she went off with someone who later did this, probably to a hotel. And she was studying criminal justice? It's not like she didn't know the dangers out there. But it's such a random thing, and that's what scares me really. Her family will never recover. Now my own family will worry about me and my sister and that puts a big limit on my freedom and peace of mind, in a number of ways. This is a good argument for self defense, and always keeping your wits about you but, really, it's the world that has to change as well. How is it that in places like Berlin.....or even Cairo.....does this happen there? How many homicides like this have taken place? These cities ........this kind of violence doesn't happen that I know of. Well, maybe I'm wrong, but from the people I've talked to there it doesn't. Maybe the girl was drunk and naive, but someone studying ....forensic psychology whatever that is, but she must have known the kinds of things out there.....but that doesn't excuse this.