We had a mock car crash today for a dont-drink-&drive assembly. It impacted me more than I ever could have imagined; perhaps on account of taking part in the crash. I looked around before they pulled the tarp to reveal the accident and saw my friend in the drivers seat and two others in the back; one unconscious. Then I glanced forward, that brief moment when the tarp reveals a whole new scene, and I see Andy in the drivers seat of the car adjacent us. And I see his face as he gets down into character, a man drunk and afraid . And it broke my heart to imagine any one of these people around me actually having to experience this for real. The terror in their eyes wasn't real, but the very thought of "what if this actually happened" threw me for a loop.
Do not drink and drive. Do not take that risk because you have an entire life to live, and in a single moment, a silly decision like that can steal it all away.
This crash today wasn't even real, it was only pretend. But fact of the matter is, the scenario I just saw play out right before my eyes earlier today is real and it does happen.
This trial didn't just remind me to make that life or death choice.
I hold my friends a little closer now. I would be lost without them and I know that.