Overdose

Overdose.

Not a good word.

But one that can be associated all too often with the death of those who have been caught into the web of addiction.

The other day I clicked on the Frain Mortuary website, just to check the obits like I usually do every so often.  Since we moved, we are not privy to news of deaths of people in the community like we used to be.  No WKVI to listen to in the mornings.  No regular delivery of the Pulaski County Journal.  No frequent phone calls with neighbors.  No visits with friends at church or stops at the bank. So checking the website keeps us informed.

Imagine my shock when I saw the picture and name of a former student on the obituary page!

He was in my English 11 Honors class as a junior.  He enrolled in both the Short Stories class and Film Lit class his senior year.

He was a member of the Student Council, so he participated in the bi-weekly meetings, committee work, and many of the activities. He always kept the meetings fun and interesting with his new ideas to present.  One thing I remember is that he and some of his friends wanted to change the homecoming dance from a semi-formal affair in the cafeteria to a more casual activity in the auxiliary gym, complete with haybales and cornstalks.  He smirked that he knew I wouldn't like it and wouldn't let them make the changes he initiated, but I insisted that the membership decided those things and all he needed to do was make a motion and have a vote.  It passed. It happened.  Not too many people liked it, especially some of the seniors who looked forward to the dress-up format of the dance.  But it was their dance, and they voted, and they made the changes.  (and the dance returned to the original format the next year---after another motion and vote!)

I remember his talking often, during the down times before and after the class time, about how he could sneak around and his step-father, an Indiana State trooper and then the Pulaski County Sheriff, would never catch him.  I usually walked to the door of the classroom, stood out in the hall where I could keep an eye on the students but not really hear what they were saying.  I didn't like knowing that those types of things were happening.  I didn't want to be harboring information that I might regret not passing on to others who might be able to help or stop those types of activities.  Maybe I should have listened more closely.  Maybe I should have passed on some of the information to others who might have been able to help.  One never knows.

One time after his graduation I saw him.  We were in Francesville, but I can't remember how long ago it happened nor the exact place we were.  But I do remember the conversation.

First he thanked me for teaching him how to write.  He said he had really learned so much about organization and style from my class.  He continued to say that the skill he possessed was now making him some money.  Oh yes!  He was writing papers for Purdue students, they were paying him for his work, and those papers were receiving A's in their classes for them.  I wasn't quite sure how to respond to that.  Uh...thank you?  Thank you for the compliment on helping your with your writing skills...but to help others cheat on their grades at a Big 10 school?  And you were being paid for it?

Another friend shared with me that he had told her that he was glad he was off that stuff.  She had seen him soon after her brother had survived an overdose.  She had told him she was happy that he had turned his life around.

Evidently he hadn't.

You know...that is one thing that he did well.  He told you what he thought you would want to hear.  Then he would twist it either to get in a sarcastic dig, or he would try to cover up something he really didn't want you to know.

Back to the obit....when I read the first line and saw the words "..died on February 14...." with no explanation, such as 'as a result of an automobile accident' or 'with his family by his side after an extended illness' I knew something was wrong.  I suspected the cause before a friend verified it.

Overdose.

How sad.

How sad for him that his life is over and that he made choices that resulted in his death.

How sad for his fiancee and their two children...now they will live their lives without him as a father and potential husband.

How sad for his parents.  Not only did they lose their only son, but they also lost a daughter many years ago.  No parent should have to bury one, let alone two, children.

How sad for our society, that drugs are so commonplace and so easily obtainable that they can grip a person's life and ruin it so quickly and easily.

Just sad.

And so heartbreaking.