FREE ESSAY ON THE WRECKAGE

THE WRECKAGE

It's New Year's Eve 1989 and the dawn of another boring decade is upon us. At least that
was my opinion as I sat in my car driving to my friend Ron's party. It was going to be
the best party of the night. Everyone who was anyone in the Senior class was going along
with a few juniors and sophomores.
When I arrived I saw my girlfriend Cindy's car parked along the side of the road along
with about thirty or forty others. I was rather glad she was already there because I
hadn't seen her for a few days because I was off visiting relatives for the holidays. As
I parked my car and got out a few of my friends called out to me so I went over and
talked to them for a few minutes before going inside.
As I stepped inside I saw Ron who told me that the kegs were in the kitchen and to go
ahead and help myself. So I went to the kitchen and grabbed a cup and filled it up. As I
walked around and talked to friends and cheered them on as they bonged beer after beer I
ran into Cindy. We were both happy to see each other and I could tell she already had a
few beers and I knew I had a little catching up to do. As we walked around some more we
ran into Ron and complimented him on the great party then kept on going.
I saw that Cindy's cup and my cup were both about empty so we headed back to the kitchen
for a refill. As we stepped into the kitchen I saw that two kegs had already been kicked
and that a third one was just being tapped. When I refilled mine and Cindy's cup my
friend Tom asked if I wanted to bong one with him so I said sure. As they filled up the
bongs I could hear people begin to cheer Tom and I on. As we gulped down a few beers
through the bongs the cheers grew louder and from that moment I knew that this was just
the beginning of a great night.
Tom then challenged me to a game of pool so we headed down to the basement where the pool
table was located. As we were walking down I could feel the beers catching up to me but
it was alright because that was what I had come for. As we started to play we began
talking about cars. Tom who had a 72 Chevy Camaro thought his car was better and faster
then my 79 Ford Mustang and could beat mine in a race any day. As we continued playing
and drinking we started arguing more and more about our cars. So as we finished our third
game of pool we decided that after the ball had dropped and the 90's began we'd race
along Old River Road. Old River Road which is an old road in the back woods that led to
an abandoned summer camp so there was no traffic on it and surprisingly stayed in good
condition. However, it is filled with sharp turns and curves, which increase the danger
and fun.
At about 11:50 everyone crowded down in Ron's basement around the big screen television
to watch the ball drop. By this time everyone was pretty drunk and stumbling around. As
the clock struck twelve and the ball dropped everyone cheered and Tom and I got ready to
race. His girlfriend Jen rode shotgun with him and Cindy rode shotgun with me, also our
friend Mike and his girlfriend Julie came with us to start us off.
When we got to the star of Old River Road we positioned our cars to race. As we waited
for the signal from Julie to start I began to think twice about the race because of how
drunk I was but decided to keep my mouth shut because I didn't want to seem like a
chicken. As soon as Julie yelled, "GO" I floored it and got a small lead but Tom was
right behind me. As the race kept going and the turns got tighter Tom put more pressure
on me to go faster and slow down less before each turn. Then all of a sudden we flew off
the road and I heard Mindy scream.
That's the last I remember of that night. Two days later I woke up in a hospital bed with
tubes and wires stuck in me and a nurse by my side. As soon as she saw I was awake she
called in a doctor. I immediately asked her where I was and what happened. The doctor
told me that I was in a wreck. I asked him if Cindy was "okay." He just said not to worry
about it and that we'd talk about it later when I was in better condition. That's when I
began to get really upset and flip out. I demanded to know how she was and the doctor
kept telling me not to worry about it. I refused to listen so finally he called in
another doctor. At the time, I did not know that this doctor was a psychologist. He told
me to calm down and he would tell me what happened. After I agreed to calm down, he told
me that when the car flew off the road, she was thrown through the windshield into a tree
and died instantly. After he told me this, I was in shock. I didn't know what to do or
say. My heart felt like it had sunk to my feet. Up until this point, I probably had not
cried in close to eight years. All of a sudden, my eyes got watery and I had to bury my
face in a pillow.
I later discovered that I would have met the same fate as Cindy would if I had not been
wearing my seat belt. She would not have met the fate she did if not for the arrogance of
two drunken teen-agers that got behind the wheel of a car. I write this story in my sixth
year of my ten-year prison sentence for DUI and manslaughter, hoping that if reading this
story causes one individual to think twice about drinking and driving, then maybe it will
save a life. Could it be yours?