Teen Years Continued 1

Now the first experiences with death came along for me about this time. My youngest sister had a friend who's father went psycho one night and he loaded a gun while their kids were gone from home. They went out in their truck we were told. They had a long dirt driveway leading from their house to the main road. They were in the truck at the main part of the road. For some reason the man went nuts and shot his wife through the head while sitting in their truck near the main road. Supposedly after he was done killing her, he turned the gun onto his own temple and did hisself in as well. It was a big community mess and people were sad and all upset. I remember the year her class graduated and all the parents were their with their kids, except for her friend's parents. It was really tough on them, but it effected me too just hearing about such things as that. I must been in my lower teen years still, around thirteen or so. I might have even been 11 or 12, maybe this should went in the early years part, but it's here none the less. It was in the lower section of my teens someplace.

Now the second round of death that came into my life was my mom's mother. She past away right along in this time of my life somewhere or another. She was in a Hospital someplace in Washington D.C. I forget the name now but she died there and none of my mom's sisters or brothers really paid their half on the funeral, so mom flew her body back to South Carolina and that's where she was buried. To this day I don't think any of them has paid their parts on the funeral but understand, as I said before, my family is a screwed up bunch. I remember them fussing and going on about mom bringing her here for burial yet none of them wanted to help pay, so that's also just how things went. Mom did it all here and that was that. I do remember my one Aunt coming down for the funeral and I think that is the only time I seen one of my cousins on that side. I haven't seen him since that time, oh so long ago. If we past each other on the street now, We wouldn't even know one another, but that's also how it is. It was a very upsetting time for the family I must say, but not as bad as my other Aunt's was, that we will go over in the twenties section.

Other deaths hit our High School as those 4 years passed us by so fast. One black boy that was in higher grades then me drownd one summer. I didn't know him all to well but that was another one. Now there was 4 that was in my grade and they were kinda known as trouble makers. They went out one night and were drinking, and they wrecked. They were going over 100 miles an hour in one of their cars when they wrecked or so we was told. It happened around 12 or 1 A.M. that night. No one found the wreck or them til later that morning around 6 or 7 A.M. when someone was heading for work. They laid out in the car all night broken up and bleeding. When they found them all it was already too late and none of those 4 survived. They didn't even get to graduate with us and were lost forever. As I sit here now and think back, I can still see one of them clear as day. I can still see his face now and remember him, and this was way back in High School. As I already said before, it's strange how some things you can just never forget.

Now there was also another boy named Shannon that I knew. I really think I had a crush on this guy. We had several classes together and after lunch he would buy blow pops at the canteen and sometimes he would give me one of his suckers, and well me being me, I just loved that and accepted them with no problems. Now as time went on and we got further up in grades, we grew apart, and he was close to one of the other 4 that died in the previous wreck and he was really torn up about that. He worked at the local grocery store here in town and when we got groceries I would just hope and pray we went through his line. Most times we did and I made sure he got tipped pretty well, LOL. Now one summer, after about 11th grade, there was some drag racing going on someplace. I wasn't there, which I never usually was. Well, Shannon was and it was another fatal night. He was not in any of the cars that were racing. But for some reason he got in the way, and was in the road they were using. They were going too fast and they didn't see Shannon in time and ran him over. I guess they were going so fast til he stood almost no chance. He died that night and I never seen him again. Another boy lost forever. I didn't go to the funeral, couldn't stand it so I just didn't go. Now at this time riding the yellow buses was a thing of the past for me, cuz I already had taking my driving test and had my license. After the funeral and after some time had passed on by, I went to the graveyard one day, now i wasn't sure where his grave actually was, just knew the graveyard he was in. I was alone so I spent some time in the cemetery, looking through graves and headstones trying to find his grave. It took my a little while of searching through plots, but I eventually found his grave. I stayed there for awhile all by myself. Now seeing as I could already drive and knew where it was, I made several trips back to his grave as well, all by myself of course. I don't even think anyone knows I go to the grave. I haven't been in many many years now but I still know just where it is. Now that I think about this part of my life again, a visit to the grave now might be something I choose to do soon. I haven't seen it in sometime, I am not even sure his mom keeps the flowers on it anymore like before, But I suspect she probably does. It was her only son as well, so she lost all her children that night. I suspect as she also does, I really miss Shannon alot still, to this day. Funny thing is, His mom doesn't even know that fact or even know me for that matter, but I still miss her son alot. I guess he is one person that I always will never forget and always MISS.