A horrible event

Earlier this week, a young woman was killed while she was driving to work around 4am on I-65.  Another young woman was going the wrong way on the interstate and the two vehicles collided.  I saw the aftermath on my drive into work that morning.  The northbound side of the interstate was still shut down as I drove to work and they were still investigating the crash scene.  The two vehicles were destroyed beyond recognition.  It was not an easy scene to pass, knowing what had happened. 

Yesterday, I asked Benjamin if he had heard about that accident and he said that they had talked about it at school.  We discussed it a bit and I explained that the girl driving the wrong way on the interstate had admitted to drinking before driving.  Benjamin told me that he had seen an interview and this girl allegedly said she thought she was in a taxi and didn't realize she was driving.  I have not heard that and I'm not trying to spread rumors or say bad things.  What I did was take this opportunity to tell Benjamin (again) that if he EVER has been drinking or is with someone who is drinking he is NOT to get into that car or drive anywhere.  He is to call me at any time of the day or night.  I told him this before and I am hoping to drill it into his brain.  I know he is only 10, but kids these days (yeah, I said it) know so much more that I did when I was young.  I think it is important to keep talking about this stuff and hopefully as our kids progress through their tween and teen years, we can still talk sometimes about important topics and let our kids know they can trust us and be honest with us. 

I'm not sure why this accident is weighing on my mind.  Maybe because I saw the vehicles where a young woman died and drive through that crash area on my way home daily.  Maybe because I know that it could have been me in either of those cars at those ages.  We've all done stupid things in our lives, but living with the knowledge that someone died because I hit them when I should not have been driving is not something I wish on anyone.