“Life is about making a million split second decisions, sometimes you need take an extra second before you decide.”

I had gotten into some trouble my freshman year of high school and that was the words of wisdom my Dad gave. Love my Dad, but he was out of state when I was growing up, so I didn’t really pay attention to what he was saying.

In was only until I got older and became a father myself that I truly understood what he meant.

Some things in life are unavoidable. Sometimes you are just at the wrong place at the wrong time or the writing has been in the wall and you are just waiting for the inevitable.

Then there are situations that are totally avoidable if you just took that extra second to think before you reacted.

While most things regardless of the situation you can live and learn from, but the one you can’t is death.

That is why I am so sad for Chris Henry and all his loved ones this morning. I am a sports guy I know a lot about players beyond what you see on the field.

When Chris Henry was at West Virginia you could see the talent, you could see the skills, but you also that he was holding himself back with his behavior. This carried over to the NFL and there was a time when you thought he would be exiled from the game like his former teammate Pacman Jones.

But from all accounts Henry had turned his life around. The Bengals took him back and he was playing well until he got hurt.

Then a split second decision and just like that he is gone.

Just a senseless, totally avoidable death and it hurts me because it is something that shouldn’t have happened. He had overcome so much and to see it end this way just makes me sad.

There are three young children who no longer have a father and as a father myself I can’t tell you how much pains me to say.

My prayers go out to his family and his kids.

Just remember before you do anything, just take the extra second to think before you do it. When things like this happen I always go to an interview with the Notorious B.I.G.

The reporter asked him how he felt about the recent passing of Tupac Shakur who before his death they had a very public falling out. In one of the most honest answers you will ever hear from a rapper he said:

“I wouldn’t wish death on no one because there is no coming back from that.”

RIP Chris Henry