Every 15 Minutes
Every 15 Minutes is a static stating someone in the United Sates dies of an alcohol-related traffic collision. It is also an emotionally challenging program designed for students, such as myself, to learn what it is like to lose someone from a drunk driver, speeding, or texting while driving. This program happened at my school yesterday and today. I am sharing this with all of you on Tumblr because I want you to know what is was like for me and what I went through on an emotional scale.
The first day of the program, students are taken out of classes by the Grim Reaper and a police officer or teacher has to read an obituary about the “dead” student. That student is then sent to the office, where their face is painted white and they are given a black t-shirt with the words “Every 15 Minutes.” For the rest of the school day, they cannot interact with anyone or display emotion. After lunch, there is a simulated car crash to show the student body what it is like to witness a fatal car crash. The “Living Dead” are then transported to a different location other than home where they will spend the night and read letters from their parents about what they wish they could have told their child before they did. Then the student has to write a letter to their parent about something they never got to say to them.
The second day there is an assembly where a video is shown of a fatal car crash and the events of the previous day. There was also a “funeral” for the student who died in the crash. Some guest speakers also make an appearance. Those are the basics, this is what it was like for me.
My brother was part of the “Living Dead.” I knew he was involved in the program, I just didn’t think it was going to be this hard to deal with. He was taken out of band class and I couldn’t talk to him for the rest of the day. My mindset completely changed when I went to see his obituary that was hung outside of the classroom he was taken from. I started to cry because the whole situation felt so real, I just kept thinking to myself, “What if this ACTUALLY happened?” I couldn’t contain the sadness from my thoughts and I went to my second class of the day in tears. My teacher let me leave the classroom with a classmate and we walked around together. We were walking through the halls when we stumbled upon the Grim Reaper. I never used to mind the Grim Reaper, but now... I can’t even look at a picture or think about him without feeling terrible and wanting to cry. The rest of the day I was in and out of classrooms because I honestly felt like my brother was taken from me.
The next day at the assembly, I lost it when I watched the video that my fellow classmates made. There was a scene in the video when you could see my brother standing next to the Grim Reaper while the band teacher read the obituary. I was sobbing the rest of the assembly and a little after that. The whole program was very emotionally hard and terrible for me, but for most of my classmates, it was just a sad presentation that they will forget about. I... I will never forget. I can’t get it out of my head. I feel so different now... like I’ve been scared for life. I can’t shake the feeling of sadness. And every time I think about it or what might happen to my brother, my eyes start to water. We barely ever say “I love you” to each other. What would happen if he died and I never said those words?
Please, anyone who reads this, tell your friends and family to be careful while out driving and to make responsible decisions. You don’t want to become a statistic.
