EVERYONE MAKES MISTAKES IN LIFE

Re. the death and memory of my friend, Jesse Catellier, 25, who was
shot and killed in Red Deer recently:

To start with, I would like to ask everyone an important question: do
you know anyone who lives his/her life without any flaws, with no
faults of their own?

Come on, be honest.

No one who drinks or smokes too much?

How about eating disorders?

Anyone ever cheated, lied, or stolen anything?

Anyone ever turn to drugs?

Any potheads in the house?

I didn't think so.

A tragedy such as this - something of this magnitude - tends to cause
the memory to slip.

People soon forget what they have once done or are doing quietly
themselves.

There is not a doubt in my mind that 99 per cent of the people on this
planet have a crutch or a dirty little secret.

Personally, I have a few things I'd like to keep under my
hat.

To read the recent articles about the events that occurred leading to
Catellier's tragic death, I see how you can be quick to judge without
knowing the heart behind the man.

My friend lived his life like the majority of you people reading this
newspaper.

On some level everyone, at least once in their life, comes to a
crossroads where they have to make a decision.

The choice you make will change the rest of your life.

Good or bad the decision is final. There is no going
back.

All the people who knew Catellier would tell you he was full of energy
and had this intensity that was full of life.

He was an in-your-face, tell-you-how-it-is kind of a guy. He had
nothing to hide. He was honest about his life and faced it head on.
Catellier may not have been your model citizen at times, but I am damn
sure he didn't deserve the punishment he received!

He had bad luck and got caught doing things that most of us have done,
but gotten away with.

He paid his dues and did his time.

Everyone else just dodged the ball again.

Booze and drugs turn this world into a scary place. Catellier knew
that, faced it and carried on with his day.

Has everyone's life turned out the way they planned?

If this is the case, my hat is off to you! But if you are like most of
us, maybe you don't have the right to judge so quickly!

Catellier's memory deserves more than a newspaper headline that read:
Drugs lead victim astray.

Brandon Fancie

Sylvan Lake