My Best Friend's Death

Throughout my eighteen years of life, my parents have told me on numerous occasions to be cautious when driving. They also told me to be alert when I am a passenger in a car. As a typical teenager, I thought that I was invincible and nothing could ever happen to me. On June 2, 2014 my invincibility expired.

It was a hot, humid day with severe weather predicted for the afternoon. My last class for the day ended at 1:15 pm. My plans were already set for the rest of the afternoon. The first thing on my agenda was to change into a more comfortable pair of shorts and a shirt. Next, I would drive to my friend John's house who had just gotten out of school. He was waiting for my arrival. We had been friends since we were little children and shared many of the same characteristics. As I arrived I noticed that the skies were gradually getting darker and that rain was beginning fall.

I decided that John should drive his car to the nearest shopping mall, mainly because I did not want to use my gas. At the mall, a few friends joined us. John and I shopped for the perfect running shoe. We were both running a half-marathon later that month. Once that was accomplished, me and the guys enjoyed a post-lunch meal and talked about any ridiculous thing that entered our minds.

On our way home, the rain started to fall rapidly. The rain drops were the size of grapes. The rain making contact with the hot pavement caused tremendous amounts of thick steam to rise up, impairing everyone's vision. Many cars were pulling over to the side of the road because it was nearly impossible to drive. Being invincible, we kept on going and did not pay attention to any of the obvious warning signals. We were able to get off the highway w...

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...tions to my head. My friend was not as fortunate. He suffered from multiple injuries to the head and chest. I later learned that while we were in the trauma room he passed away.

The similarity between the two of us was uncanny. We both played sports at a high level, we were good students, and even had the same job. What if I had driven that day? It could have easily been me instead of him. Many things can happen in life. However, I never counted on dreadful things to become reality, only hoped for good things. Our time spent together that day began as a usual trip to the mall and ended as a horrific adventure through the space between life and death. I should have never been such a cheap person by worrying about how much gas I waste. The most important thing that I learned from this experience was that there is no such thing as invincibility.