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California State University, Dominguez Hills
University of Wisconsin, Parkside
Created: November 2, 2004
Latest Update: November 2, 2004
jeannecurran@habermas.org
takata@uwp.edu

Sometimes What's Done Cannot Be Undone

This poem that Jessica suggested is a potent reminder of the dangers of drinking and driving, however tempting they might be. As I was putting the poem up I thought of the young man who had caused the accident, and how it had changed his life. I wondered how he felt as he wished that he could make it all go away.

And I thought how often we wish that we could undo a thoughtless act when we see the harm it does. Maybe someone could illustrate this for the exhibit by making a drawing or painting of the wreck itself, and by making multiple examples of the wrecked cars that people could peel of and discover that the wreck was still there, a ritualized way of recognizing that what's done sometimes cannot be undone.

It's kind of like Rabelais' Frozen Words.

I made a painting to start the issue this week with the wrecked cars. If we copied the wrecked cars and cut them out then we could layer them over the painting so that people could pull them off to undo the action, and yet discover that the wreck is still there: forzen actions. And separate copy of the wrecked cars:

And maybe you could make some copies of the young girl, showing that no matter how many times you pick her up, it doesn't change the tragic picture.

Please don't drink when you drive. That's a dominant discourse acceptance that we can each take part in changing.

 

WENT TO A PARTY, MOM

I went to a party,
And remembered what you said.
You told me not to drink, Mom
So I had a sprite instead.

I felt proud of myself,
The way you said I would,
That I didn't drink and drive,
Though some friends said I should.

I made a healthy choice,
And your advice to me was right,
The party finally ended,
And the kids drove out of sight.

I got into my car,
Sure to get home in one piece,
I never knew what was coming, Mom
Something I expected least.

Now I'm lying on the pavement,
And I hear the policeman say,
The kid that caused this wreck was drunk,
Mom, his voice seems far away.

My own blood's all around me,
As I try hard not to cry.
I can hear the paramedic say,
This girl is going to die.

I'm sure the guy had no idea,
While he was flying high,
Because he chose to drink and drive,
Now I would have to die.

So why do people do it, Mom
Knowing that it ruins lives?
And now the pain is cutting me,
Like a hundred stabbing knives.

Tell sister not to be afraid, Mom
Tell daddy to be brave,
And when I go to heaven,
Put Daddy's Girl on my grave.

Someone should have taught him,
That it's wrong to drink and drive.
Maybe if his parents had,
I'd still be alive.

My breath is getting shorter, Mom
I'm getting really scared.
These are my final moments,
And I'm so unprepared.

I wish that you could hold me Mom,
As I lie here and die.

MADD IS HOPING TO GET 5,000 SIGNATURES ON THIS,
please return it to:
MADD
PO Box 541688
Dallas , TX 75354-1688
1-800-GET-MADD (1-800-438-6233)

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