I died two weeks ago.
There was a memorial;
and a headstone,
and tears.
It was all very sad.
I was a teacher participant in my school's Every 15 Minutes, a program presented by our local Sheriff's department. Every 15 Minutes is designed to inspire high school students to think before getting behind the wheel after they've had a drink. Most Every 15 Minute programs involve a mock accident and maybe an assembly, this one went well beyond that. As a teacher-participant, I joined 20 students for a 24 hour long experience that included the mock accident, a jail tour, a morgue visit, a visit to the courthouse with a presentation from the judge, D.A., public defender, and victims rights advocate. We spent the night sequestered at a local hotel were we listened to speakers, read letters from the students' parents, and wrote letters to our loved ones about how we regretted being dead because someone chose to drive after drinking. One student was "arrested" and another went to the hospital with an injury that left him "brain dead". Every student's parent received a visit from the sheriff's chaplain informing them of their student's death. It was intense stuff. The next day, the students attended an assembly were they heard one parent read his letter to his daughter and listened to a speaker talk about the day that he killed his little brother in an alcohol related accident.
At some point in the whole process, our "deaths" stopped being pretend and started feeling real. Maybe it was the testimonials from the officers who were working with us? Their raw, real losses and the intimacy stories like that bring. Maybe it was the letters from parents saying things that, even the best parents, don't say often enough. Most likely it was all of it, the whole experience.
I may be an outlaw, but I sure do think highly of this team of officers and the work they do in our community and with my students.
