I've been thinking about parenthood this morning.

Last night on the news they showed a Sydney mother who had flown to Bali to see her poor, stupid son - just 18 and standing trial, with the strong possiblity of a death sentence, for heroin smuggling. While it is hard to feel anything above contempt for these ridiculously stupid, naive young people, it is easy to feel sympathy for their families. As he sat in the court, looking like a school kid dressed in his dad's suit, his mother whispered "Stay strong". The pain of parental love is almost unbearable.

I awoke to the morning news and pictures of a young boy being rescued from one of the many collapsed schools in Pakistan. He has been there for a number of days and was found by a French rescue team. The sight of his father hugging and kissing him as he emerged from the concrete demolition site of the school building made me cry. The pain of parental love is almost unbearable.

Then as I drove to work I listened to an interview with a Sydney man whose 14 year old daughter was killed in the first Bali terrorist attack three years ago. He spoke about how he and his wife awoke this morning and did what they do every morning - cry. He spoke about what great mates they were... surfing together, how he'd coached her basketball and netball teams, how they did everything together. His voice was strong but he battled to control evey word, the emotion was just underneath the surface. The pain of parental love is almost unbearable.

We all must die. That is a simple fact. But there must be little in this life that is worse than losing a child. When an adult dies there is some comfort in their life, in their achievements, in the mark they have made on the lives of others. One can be philsophical about their life and death and thus come to terms with their passing. When a parent looses a child... to illness, to a sudden accident, to murder... there is little to be philosophical about. How do you find meaning in that senseless loss? I simply can not fathom it.

Today, for some reason I can not comprehend, I am thinking about all those parents who have lost their children and I grieve for their loss.