Today, just after midnight, a friend of mine was murdered at the convenience store he was working at. It was one of three jobs he held. Just trying to get by. It was to be his last night at this job, because the hospital had hired him full time.

He had been robbed two weeks ago, and he had given them everything they wanted. There is a video on the news stations of the moment he lost his life at 1 am this morning. They're keeping it up so the public can help identify the murderer. Despite the nausea I felt at the idea of looking at it, I did. In it, it shows him giving them the money from the cash register. Almost immediately, he gets shot. He falls to his knees, gets back up and continues to take money out of the register and hands it to them. They flee at that moment and Tony falls to his knees, clasping his stomach.

 He leaves behind two small children and a legion of people who loved him.

I'm stunned. I'm sick. It feels unreal, but I know it's not. My friend is dead.