I want to thank Jen of Jen and Tommy’s blog in Lowell for publishing her thoughts about the young woman shot and killed in the city last week. Tavaryna Choeun of Lawrence was 17 years old when she died. I read in the newspaper that her body was found on Suffolk Street, not far from Harmony Park, where the neighbors and others in the community had recently come together to celebrate the renewal of the park. Many years ago, after a murder outside a music club on Thorndike Street, I put some words together in an attempt to describe my response to the shocking incident. A young man was shot and killed in the parking lot. One minute he was there, the next he was gone — his life transformed into a headline in the moment. That’s how most of us got the news about this latest killing. Back then, I wrote: “Wrong minute of the wrong night,/ but who the hell ever knows?” Ms. Choeun didn’t know what was coming either, according to what the law enforcement authorities are saying about the tragedy. We can say “senseless” when talking about such a crime, but there’s a whole context and chain of action connected to this. There’s sense. Bad sense. Many people had something to say about the killing. The Topix section related to the Sun news article had more than 100 comments, some of the voices raw and rough, doing their own kind of local blogging. Jen is someone new to the city, someone who has written with wonderful enthusiasm and affection for the place and people here. She and Tommy came here to enjoy what’s good about the community and bring their own good spirit to it. I appreciate what she said about standing up for peace. If you want to read her post, click here.