I’m sorry that your friend died, and that everyone who loved her is in such pain now.
I’m sorry she paid such a price for making a bad decision. Death doesn’t give second chances.
I’m thankful that her mistake didn’t cost any others their lives.
I’m hopeful that her death will cause someone, somewhere to stop and think, and perhaps save another life in the future.
But most of all, I’m sorry to see a bright young life ended too soon, and I hope her parents have the strength to carry on.
Locally, a number of years ago now, sisters were killed in an accident that I don’t know the details of. Pretty girls, they were (I think) 16 and 18, or 17 and 19, something like that. Their devestated parents break my heart on every anniversary when they post pictures of their girls in the paper, with paragraphs reading asking why they were taken, and how can they go on, and telling how their own lives ended that night that they lost their girls. It’s so horrible to see that three times a year - they never miss a birthday or an anniversary of their death. I shudder to think how much they have spent on memorial notices, as they often include three photographs with each notice. Those poor people. I don’t know them, but their grief touches me and makes me feel sorrowful.
Tonight, at her viewing, there were nothing but tears. I tried my hardest to cry nothing but happy tears, for gaining an angel. But when I saw her, I almost fell. She looked so alive. She just looked like she was asleep. I wanted so bad for her to just open her eyes. I wanted her to just “wake up”. It was too much…
But then it got ignorant. Everyone went to the bridge that she drove off of, after the funeral, and it was sad. I thought that we would just be quiet and reflect, but no. There were about 60 of us, and 2 cops were there looking out. But then they said we had to move because of the traffic (it’s a small residental street, but it’s 2 lanes of traffic, one each way). A lot of people were able to go on the grassy side of the bridge, right by the water, but there were too many of us. So we just stood there on the side of the road as much as we could. But the cops got mad and said we had to leave period. I was all about leaving. Cops say leave, I leave.
But no. Some of these girls are a lil immature. They stopped thinking about why we were really there, and decided to get all in the cop’s faces. Cursing at them and screaming. So they arrested 2 girls. And were on the verge of arresting more. I left. I wasn’t going to be around that. That was a time for reflecting and allowing yourself to be at peace. They were not thinking about Stirling. I don’t know. But it broke my heart to see Stirling’s sister there by the casket hugging people as they went by. She was crying hysterically. She looks exactly like Stirling. Just like 2 inches taller. I was speechless. Her mother was in another room, being sedated. But Stirling did look beautiful. Yes I will say that. She looked at peace. And i’m thankful for that.
Jenny*
There was one at ‘The Junction’ in Commerce, TX in 1991. I remember because me and my friends had a lot of fun with it seeing who was drunkest. I don’t think it was too accurate, because me and two friends would go there and have two pitchers of beer, and we would frequently blow in the high .20s to .30s.
I seem to remember some debate about the legal liabilities which would be incurred by the owners of such machines if people were to disregard the legal disclaimers plastered all over the machine’s cabinet and either get a DWI by relying on an inacurate test result OR get into an accident by assuming that being under the legal limit is the same thing as being sober enough to drive safely, which it is not. Plus, such machines would also be a problem for people who “tanked up” quickly in a bar, blew into the machine and then left. Their B.A.C. (blood alcohol content) might test out fine, then rise precipitously AFTER the drinker got behind the wheel. The owner of the machine could end up owing millions to the drunk driver and his/her victims.