Two kids at my high school died in the three years I was there. The first was the son of some family friends. It was devastating. He was so sick, and I think I deluded myself into thinking he would be okay. I never went to visit him at the hospital, a decision I regret to this day. That was my sophomore year.
The seniors at my high school, go on this thing we call the Pilgrimage. It's really just an all day hike, and camping trip. Part of the way through the hike one of the guys ran past us, back toward the trail head. We asked what was wrong, and he said someone had collapsed. I thought nothing of it. It was a hard trail with hills and switchbacks. It was warm out, and we had already been hiking a couple of hours. Later, when we were at our campsite gathered around the fire, the teachers informed us that the girl who had collapsed died. We were all in shock.
There were two more deaths right after I left high school. One girl committed suicide, a boy got hit by a train.
It seemed like so much death to me during those few years. It doesn't seem normal, to know that many teens that have died in such a short amount of time.
We had a suicide in the summer after our graduation, too. The girl was someone I liked a lot, who always seemed so composed and calm. I was absolutely stunned when she died.
ReplyDeleteCathy