A friend from high school died.

When I changed schools in the 10th grade one of my first friends was Mary. Her house was the first sleep over after the move. Her older sister (a Sr. at the time) invited us to most of the cool parties. She wasn't the prettiest girl at school. She wasn't the smartest either. But in truth, she was one of the nicest.

We didn't become "best friends". As a matter of fact, she ended up being on those friends you sometimes hang out with, then end up hardly ever hanging with.

We've been out of school for over 10 years now. I've lived in three states besides Louisiana since graduation. It didn't matter, when she saw me she always said Hello and asked about the husband, Lullah, my parents. The thing is, she actually cared about the answers. Every time. She'd had a lot go on since school too. Married, two daughters, a divorce, in school, out of school, gained weight,lost weight. Her parents house burned down. Life threw her some pretty big curves.

She was killed early Saturday morning. The truck she was riding in ran off the road. She was thrown from the vehicle and later died at the local hospital. The guy driving was drunk. He left the scene before anyone got there. She was left there alone. I hope she didn't know she was alone.

I keep thinking that I'm never going to just run into Mary again. We're never going to laugh about the things the other has heard about former classmated. We're never going to laugh over the trials and tribulations of raising girls. I'll go to her funeral tomorrow and then I'll never see her again. She was 34. She was a mom. She had a quick laugh. She was one of the nicest people I will ever know. And she's gone.