Got extremely bad news yesterday. I'm calmer now, but to say that I was seeing red yesterday would be an understatement.
While driving back from a bush party, two of my former classmates were killed and another sent to the hospital. One of them was 17 and the other 19 and the third is around the same age. Apart from the lapse in judgement, they were good guys. Brennan was a bit of a trouble maker, but his heart was in the right place. I'll never forget how mad he got when I tack welded the stove he built to the floor. Levi used to ask about my nephew all the time, and his enthusiasm for everything set him apart from the rest. I recall a few months ago, he offered to teach me how to drive standard in his truck. I should have taken him up on the offer, but never did.
I keep asking myself, "Had I actually gone to that bush party, would I have been able to stop them from driving?" I wasn't overly close to them, but you spend several months in a classroom of 14 people, you start feeling like family after awhile. It honestly feels like I lost family. Earlier that afternoon, we were happily shooting pool and having lunch. We parted ways and shook hands. The last thing I said to them was "If I don't see you guys tonight, best of luck in the future!"
Reading on facebook it's just disbelief. Upon graduating, one of the guys wrote
"As of today I start paving my own road, I had a great time and learned lots while doing so. Congrats to the rest that were in my class and becoming certified first years *names removed* and whomever else I might have missed. It was a good run."
You can preach "Don't drink and drive" many times, but so often it falls on deaf ears or gets ignored. If you CANNOT drive, spend the night. I don't care if you're in the bush or not, don't drive. It's not worth it. We've all done supid ****. I can recall a few instances where I got lucky when I was younger, but the reality never hits home until that one time it happens to someone you know. It's a lesson you see in the news over and over and over, but nobody ever learns. It was preventable, and that's what angers me.
It just hurts. They were young. Hell, one of my buddies has a daughter that just turned 16, so maybe that's why it hits as hard as it does. We can only move forward, but I URGE everyone to never get in a vehicle with someone behind the wheel who's been drinking. If you can and by any means, stop them from driving. It's not worth it...