history: My really close friend lost her parents and siblings in a fire and consoling her about the incident just made me realize how thankful I should be each day for the family I'm blessed with.  Im so grateful for my family due to an incident with my friend Oh really? What happened with your family and friend then?
current: My friend lost her parents and siblings in a fire and their family was very close to mine. So seeing her go through the grief made me realize how thankful I should be 
next: Oh wow, that's awful. Stuff like that really teaches you to appreciate what you've got and to not take it for granted.