The saddest news I've heard in a long time

 

If this report doesn't bring tears to your eyes, I don't know what will.

A 2-year-old English boy was found starved to death next to the body of his father, who had suffered a fatal heart attack two weeks earlier.

Little Bronson Battersby was found dead curled up next to his 60-year-old father, Kenneth, at their home in Skegness, Lincolnshire, on Jan. 9 — 14 days after they were last seen by family over the holidays.

The pair were last seen alive on Dec. 26 — not long before Kenneth suffered a fatal heart attack, ultimately leaving his son alone with no one to care for him.

. . .

The social worker visited their home on Jan. 2 after failing to make contact with the father on Dec. 27. She returned to the house two days later but was still unable to reach Kenneth.

The social worker contacted the cops after each visit but was only able to enter the home after getting a key from the landlord days later, their family told the outlet.

Authorities in Lincolnshire have since launched a review into the child’s death.

. . .

“It breaks my heart. Bronson deserved so, so much better. He was such a loving, adorable little boy. They found him curled up at Kenneth’s legs,” the friend said. “He was left in the dark and must have been terrified and so confused.”

The boy’s father was unemployed and had a heart condition that led him to become severely jaundiced in the months leading up to his death.

There's more at the link.

Please join me in praying for the souls of that young boy and his father.  For both of them, it was a horrible way to die.  As for the surviving family, may they receive what comfort is possible.  I'm sure, under the circumstances, there isn't much.

Please also let this be a reminder to us all:  if your health is permanently impaired, and/or if you have others dependent on you for care who would suffer if you weren't able to look after them, please, please make sure someone is checking on you regularly (at least daily), and able to get into your home to provide help if anything looks wrong.  Bronson might still be alive today if that had been done.

I realize that warning applies to me as well.  Both my wife and myself suffer from long-term debilitating health problems, and I've had two heart attacks.  I'm living on borrowed time, to put it bluntly;  a third heart attack is more likely than not to finish me off, unless it can be detected and treated very early in proceedings.  That means I need to make sure my wife will be OK if I'm not around when she needs me.  I'll be checking in with a couple of close friends over the next few days, to tell them about this incident and ask them to add me to their "Call him if he doesn't get in touch for a day or two" list.

Food for thought . . . and prayer.

Peter