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Physical scars

Victims of and advocates against drunk driving have been the motivating force behind awareness campaigns that have kept the issue in the limelight over the past few decades. It is more than the physical scars that are driving these campaigns, says one victim of a drunk driver.

There are some things that the young man remembers vividly from the accident that happened over two and a half years ago. For instance, he remembers portions of the accident itself, including feeling the blood as it trickled down his face as he lie upside down, unable to wipe it out of his eyes because his arms were trapped.

He remembers seeing the lifeless eyes of his brother in the seat next to him, but it was the memories before and after the accident that hurt the most.

He remembered his Hispanic mother going from learning English with him while watching Sesame Street to earning a degree. It was watching his father lose their home to foreclosure and wanting to rebuild their lives. It was giving his younger brother advice as he started the rest of his life.

It was waking up from a coma and hearing his wife tell him that he was paralyzed from the neck down and that he had lost his father, mother and brother in the crash. It was understanding the responsibility she was burdened with to tell him the news, but being unable to console her with a hug.

The physical scars are painful, but he said that they are something he could live with. He said that the memories from the accident are something that he could relive as long as his story could help prevent other drivers from partaking in a reckless action that often alters another’s life forever.

Source: Gawker, “My Wife Looks Nervous: A Drunk Driver Killed My Family,” Jimmy Anderson, June 1, 2013