Billy Markowitz
One Mistake Can Change So Many Lives The loss of a loved one in someone’s family is the most tragic thing to happen in life. So many lives are changed when someone close dies from a natural death or some other cause such as murder, car accident, or even Mother Nature (I.E. hurricanes, tornadoes, fire, storm, or lightning strike). I know that this is true because my family and I have suffered through the loss of a loved one. Over a year ago, we lost someone very close to us, Andy Markowitz, my father. It is in times like these that the saying, “One Mistake Changes So Many Lives,” is definitely true. On May 16, 2010, we received the worst news we have ever gotten. At approximately 10 PM, my brother’s phone started ringing and Kim, my step-mother’s name was showing up on the phone. When Danny, my brother answered the phone, Kim told him to give the phone to my mom. A few minutes later, we heard my mother scream into the phone, “What do you mean he’s gone?” We never got the chance to ask her what happened because she ran out the door and drove away. While I was staring out the window, my brother turned to me and said, “I think Daddy went to heaven.” Those are words that I will never forget. I didn’t have an answer for him, but I knew that he was probably right. My mother came back home around midnight that night and called us into the living room. I could tell instantly that she had been crying and I knew that it was going to be serious because I have never seen her cry as much as she had right now. She then says to us, “I didn’t want to come home and tell you guys this, but your dad died tonight.” I was silent until I asked, “How did he die?” My mom said, “He was on his way up to the shop to give something to Chris and a drunk driver pulled out and stopped in the middle of the intersection. He tried to swerve out of the way, but he got