This is posted at the risk of using every cliche in the book

Having recently spent several days in the company of a very elderly woman, who despite numerous physical problems and frailties continues to cling to life with astonishing persistence, I am astounded at the human body's desire to live. (Cliche number one.) Eighty years of working and living and general wear and tear aren't enough to pull the life from someone, even if they genuinely are a little bit tired of the struggle. And now, having just received news of the sudden death of a person who had not yet had the opportunity to reach the age of eighty, or in fact, thirty, the Editor is moved, once again, to wonder at the ways of the universe. There's cliche number two, hope you were ready for it.

Now, plenty of others are going to eulogize this individual, and they will doubtless display more eloquence, poetry, and depth of feeling than the callous, cynical, practical Editor could muster in a month of Sundays. And how, really, does one go about summing the qualities of any individual into few enough words to post in writing, or say in front of an audience? A whole lifetime is the only unit of time sufficient to describe a living mutable being, and a lifetime, in this case, is precisely what is no longer available for the task. No doubt she would have described herself through her own actions, given the chance, better than any fumbling outsider could do with posthumous, useless praise. There's no real reason to dwell on a mischievous smile, never-failing good humor, and an ability to drink Mountain Dew by the cask without ever losing composure. Nor a tendency to appear at dive bars dressed as if for a senior prom, with wildly curled hair and prominent freckles. Competence, intelligence, kindness; hopes, dreams, aspirations and ambition, are now equally irrelevant. Would the elderly woman I know have gladly given up what's left of life for her, if she thought it could prevent one young person's gruesome and utterly, utterly pointless end? Yes, most likely. Would it have done any good? No.

Please note, the Editor is under no illusions as to the originality of these sentiments, nor are my trite remarks phrased in any more memorable way than anyone else has ever found. Unfortunately, the need to continually attempt to express the completely inexpressible is as much an inevitable part of the human condition as death. I gave up counting the cliches. If anyone comes up with a complete total, and I'm not drunk somewhere, let me know.