Editor's note: This is the final installment of the column for the semester, Dr. D will continue to accept inquiries throughout the summer.

E-mail him your questions at dennis.martell@ht.msu.edu

There were many questions this week in regard to the horrific shootings that occurred last week at Virginia Tech.

Many of these have to do with the concept of disbelief that life could end so abruptly and tragically.

The sheer number of people whose lives will never go beyond that moment seems to be the defining point of the disbelief in the minds of many students.

There has been an incredible amount of dialogue and coverage by the media and pundits all over the world about the shooter, his motives, gun control, mental health and the world's reaction.

All of this is expected and for some it helps; for others it does not.

For me, it only serves to galvanize my thoughts as to the meaning and value of this time and space existence we call life.

I have been at MSU for more than 20 years and during that time I have had the opportunity and privilege to work and interact with students — people in their teens and above.

These are people who have chosen for one reason or another to come to a university to spend time and occupy space to learn and experience. That really is it!

They have chosen to spend moments of their existence in this reality with the thoughts and dreams that down the road they will have a 'real' life outside of this world, doing something they love or think will bring them happiness and satisfaction.

Call it semantics or naivety about the true meaning of life, but I can't tell you the number of times I have heard students say, "I can't wait until I am done."

Or "Only three more months until I am finished," or my favorite "I can't wait to get into the 'real world.'"

I understand the genesis and semantic nuances of most of these comments, but it still concerns me for some there is a resounding belief that there is an almost certainty of life beyond the present moment.

Don't get me wrong, I have dreams like anyone else and I sincerely hope I will have many moments to come in which to experience life. But accepting as true you are entitled to life beyond the moment can lull one to believe the time they have chosen to experience in the present can be assigned very little meaning or is only assigned meaning because it leads to the next moment.

And yes, students are not the only ones to approach life in this way.

I also hear older adults say this about the progression of their lives especially those who are in careers or living situations in which they do not feel present satisfaction or meaning.

Either way, the meaning of life, for me, is not found in the waiting to get to a future moment.

The meaning of life is found in how you define, and what you learn, from the everyday moments in that process in which you move from where you are now to where you end up.

Yes, there may, and will, be moments you can't wait to get through, past or forget. There are all kinds of human tragedies; and I do not mean to say you should embrace these, but they do become part of our meaning.

When faced with moments that I would not like to embrace, I usually need to remind myself and tell others that, "Life is good, although there are moments right now that are challenging."

Life needs to be a commitment that you make to yourself to be in it in the present, to give what you have in the moment, and not to feel entitled, but to hope, that there will be many more moments.

So what is the meaning of a college life?

Just that — the moments of life!

So whether you are trying to come to some understanding of the tragedy at Virginia Tech, or to ascribe some meaning to the past academic year, or for the graduates, the next year, keep this in mind.

The moment right NOW as you read this, for every moment has meaning.

Carpe Diem. Dr. D.

Dennis Martell is a coordinator of Olin Health Education and writes a weekly health column for The State News.