Wishing You Well

This last post does not really relate to anything else I have discussed in my blog during my internship, but it is something I feel the need to discuss since it happened in the midest of my time at the Newberry. It's also a reflection of how sometimes life can change in an instant, that it is unpredictable. Just like you never truly know what you will find in a book until you open it up and read it.
I have had the same best friend since kindergarten, and yes I really do mean best friend. She is currently studying neuroscience at Rhodes College in Memphis, but that's besides the point. I'm not even really wanting to talk about her, I'm wanting to talk more about someone I met through her. My best friend's little brother was born on December 29, 1996, the same day that she stood me up at the skating rink. I still haven't forgiven her. Her brother was the kind that always followed us around, wanting to hang out with the girls who were 6 years his senior and really didn't want anything to do with him. We even duct taped him to a chair once and threw a sheet over him when he was bothering us. I watched this kid grow up, he even lived with my family and I during my freshman year of high school. However he went to California with his dad after a few months and my best friend lived the remainder of our freshman year with me. My best friend's little brother was a handful at times, always needing something to do, pulling things apart and putting them back together. Last year he made the decision to go to school at the Marine Academy in Texas. This is where he really began to grow up, finding structure for the first time in his life really. He had just gotten his driving permit a few weeks ago, before a family trip to the East coast with my best friend and her dad and step mom. I don't think anyone was really prepared for what would happen 3 days after they returned home from the family vacation. My best friend had already gone back to school and I, well I was sitting at home watching 21 Jumpstreet and trying to keep my corgi puppy from biting me. Funny how we remember the moments when our lives are completely altered. My best friend's little brother was out jogging that night and came to a green crosswalk. He had to the right away. At the same time a PT Cruiser and Black Sedan were street racing. At 9:55pm on July 21, 2013 my best friend's little brother was struck and killed by a car. And the worse part was the driver didn't even stop, they just kept going. He was rushed to a local hospital but there was nothing they could do.
I don't think anyone is really prepared for that kind of phone call from their best friend. The kind that makes you drop everything, to be their for a person who has stood by you for 15 years. Getting in a car and driving was the best decision I ever made. Because if history has taught me anything it has taught me that humanity in a time of crisis is more memorable and touching for the good things people do.