• Originally published May 30, 2008 at 11:14 p.m., updated May 30, 2008 at 11:14 p.m.

Well, Victoria, it’s been one doozie of a week, hasn’t it?

Everyone and their brother...and their brother’s cousin’s hairdresser has been indicted.

We’ve got half the city screaming for District Attorney Steve Tyler’s head and the other half screaming for the heads of every other leader in the city.

We’ve got an Advocate reporter getting subpoenaed and having to put up with Judith Miller jokes (Sorry, Gabe).

Discussion forum wars are breaking out all over the place online over issues like spanking your child and global warming.

And I’m pretty sure soon we’re going to see a re-enactment of “Gangs of New York” on Main Street between Tami Keeling supporters and Dr. Charles Jaynes supporters.

And then, if that wasn’t enough, of course we’ve got our upbeat national headlines, such as: “War in Iraq expected to be over by 2150.”

“Gas prices hit 82 bah-jillion dollars a gallon.”

“Presidential candidates continue to fling poo at each other.”

Man, forget buying the world a Coke. I say we buy everyone some Prozac. And maybe a shot of tequila as well.

It’s times like these when you have to step back and see the bigger picture. Or, in some cases, something happens that forces you to put things into perspective.

This week, the Advocate lost a very beloved member of its family. Annie Hernandez, who had worked for the paper for more than 20 years, died in a car crash on Thursday.

Needless to say, it’s been a rough couple of days.

Working in this industry, a lot of times we get to see the worst of humanity. If we’re not covering murders and corruption, we’re dealing with angry members of the community who think we’re the spawn of Satan.

But this week, I saw the best in humanity. I saw people drop everything to console their fellow co-workers. I saw tears being shed by the company owner down to recent hires. And I saw 100 plus employees come together to start a college fund for Annie’s 15-year-old daughter because it was always Annie’s dream that Heather get a good education.

No matter what you think of humanity as a whole, it’s hard denying that the one thing we all do well as a human race is come together in times of tragedy. As the planes were going down on Sept. 11, the messages from the planes were ones of love, not hate. During Hurricane Katrina, it was average citizens jumping into boats to rescue people who were stranded. And when a family member or friend passes away, the first thing you hear from everyone you know is “What can I do to help?”

So do me a favor today. Go home and hug the ones you love. Forget about all your troubles and those of the world and let the best of your humanity shine through.

Just for today.

Aprill Brandon is a reporter for the Advocate. Contact her at 361-580-6514 or abrandon@vicad.com.

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