So picture this: you've known someone since elementary school. You "dated" the person in second grade, and you lost touch almost seven years after you ended middle school with this person. And then, on one Sunday evening, you read a post that has a picture of this person that says "rest in peace." It doesn't really sit in who this person is because it obviously can't be true, until you message a friend and find out that it is. This happened to not only me, but everyone I grew up with. It's always great to re-connect with people who you don't see often. But, it should never be at a funeral. On Sunday, two weeks ago, we lost a dear friend to drugs.
Drugs period are a horrible addiction, and they happen to the best of us. Some of us don't make it out of our addictions, and that is exactly what happened to my old friend Nicky. He was always the sweet kid growing up, never had anything bad to say about anybody, and would have your back in a second if he knew you were in trouble. Pot, which is a gateway drug, turned into something much more. A mother who went from warning her son and his friends to stay away from the wildly used drug now has to face the fact that her son will never give her one more hug because it started out as just one joint. He loved his family, and would always end messages with "I love you" to them. He was the person that brightened your day whenever he was around. Out of anybody, I never expected him to fall fate to an addiction problem. Luckily, I get to remember him as that sweet-faced kid who was always smiling.
Everybody thinks that it's okay to do drugs recreationally, and get involved in things that they shouldn't be doing. Clearly, it could never happen to them, right? When tragedies like these happen, people get shaken. But is it enough? Is seeing first hand what drugs do really enough to stop yourself from doing something that could wind you up in the same place? Nicky never expected to have his life end at the age of twenty, and instead of going to the job he got hired at, he's in the ground six feet under. Instead of gathering with friends at the park or hanging out on a Saturday night with his group, his friends had to attend his funeral. Because of drugs, a mother lost a son, a sister and a brother lost a sibling, and friends lost one of their own.
Nicky died alone on a street in my neighborhood. He didn't get to go home that night to his family, didn't get to go meet up with friends. Instead, he died on a street. His chain and watch were taken from him. And, more importantly, his life was taken from him. If anything can be taken away from this situation, it might be that those who are struggling with drugs realize just what a drug addiction does. Nobody deserves to have their life cut short due to addiction, and hopefully Nicky is resting peacefully. Rest in peace to my old friend.
