IWOULD like to express my deep sorrow about the massacre in Dunblane, in which the spirit of a closely knit community was cruelly snuffed out by a crazed gunman.

I am sure all people must have thought it couldn't happen here and although it is now some time after the event, nevertheless, the anguish and suffering of those parents will last for a very long time.

As the Secretary of State for Scotland and his opposite number, George Robertson, have said, this was a community in which dangers of this kind were not known and, therefore, what subsequently occurred was a horror that will haunt that town forever, even if the scars in due time heal.

I feel this catastrophe, just before Easter, is a reminder that life is precious and that all of us who will shortly celebrate this special time are vulnerable to the relationship we share with others.

When Jesus was travelling the roads of Israel, one of the things he said was: 'Suffer little children to come unto me.' Probably, to those parents who have lost their children, it doesn't seem much of a comfort, but the darkest hour is just before the dawn and any hope of eternal life at such a time of deep darkness and grief is, I am sure, a better solace than any inadequate words.

DUNCAN McVEE, Robin Bank Road, Darwen.

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