I would bet that every person reading this has felt the frustration of having something to say and everyone else too focused on their own thoughts to really listen. Yet, even though we’ve all felt the sting of being misunderstood, very few of us make the effort to understand before we give our opinions.

I wish I knew how to create an environment where young people with dark thoughts feel like they can talk them over with people who can help them. How much violence could we prevent is we were more open and young people felt they could trust us? How much pain could we soothe if young people who have experienced abuse felt they could tell us about it?

Matthew’s death was sad and unexpected and it caused in me some deep reflection. He isn’t the first friend or family member I’ve known to have died. As I’ve prayed for his family and spent time in the temple over the last couple of weeks I’ve found comfort and peace.

In life, it is often helpful to know what came before, what events triggered other events. That kind of information can help us understand life and make better choices. It can comfort us to have an explanation for the difficult things and give us an understanding of why we feel the way we do.