How do you prepare yourself for when you know bad news is coming? Where you find yourself with a loved one in front of you crying, mumbling on about how they need to tell you something? Your stomach is tied in knots and your jaw-line tenses while it feels like forever for the person to form the words out that your friend has been in accident. They sob in between sentences and it drives you insane because you have a million questions running through your mind, “Why, how, when, where.” Then, it's just pure silence, once their sentence finishes with “[h]e did not make it”.

Friends are supposed to stay throughout a lifetime. No one ever thinks they are going to lose a friend, so there is not much preparation for it, especially when it occurs so suddenly. But, when it does happen, people find themselves at a loss. Because how does one cope with the fact that they will never hear their friend’s goofy jokes anymore, or hear about their crazy nights or just hear them laugh again? When a friend dies, it severely impacts the friend group because now there is an empty seat at the table where a special person used to sit. How does one even comfort another friend when you yourself are just as torn up? When a friend dies it seems like it's not real, like they are going to walk in the room any second and yell, Sike!” because that’s something that you secretly wish they would do.

Losing someone is devastating, but there are some tips to help with the brute of it. The best one is to lean on friends and family, even when you just want to be crawl in bed and hide. Your friends and your family will hold you and sometimes all you need is a hug from the right person. Think about the good times with your friend, make yourself laugh thinking about the funny memories you guys had together. Your laughter may turn into tears, but it is important to focus on the happy times. But, lastly, take this as a lesson because it will make you stronger as a person in the end, but it will also make you cherish your life more. If you learn anything from this, it’s that one second people are here, and the next, they are gone. So live your life everyday, do things you are scared to do and show love to the people you love as much as you can. Make mistakes, take risks and do the things you always said you would do, but have not because life is just too short.

In honor of Cam Macdonald, Rest easy buddy.