My Best Friend Nate example essay topic

The Accident Every once and awhile I'll look back on my life and I'll laugh. Particularly at the times I spent with my best friend Nate and all the mischief we caused. I look back now and I think what the HELL were we doing? How did we not die? Have you ever sat down and had a conversation with a male teen between the ages of 14-17?

I should " ve been locked away for that period of my life, I swear I was temporarily insane. I had NO concept of 'consequences' or 'repercussions'. I did whatever, whenever. Unfortunately this little package of immaturity also came with other misleading thoughts such as a sense of invincibility, a total disregard for any authority, and taking pretty much EVERYTHING in my life for granted. What's also unfortunate, is that I had to learn all of these life lessons the hard way, and in one horrible night when I was just sixteen and a half years old. As I said, Nate and I are best friends, a little out of touch now, but best friends nonetheless.

I guess it was the fact that we were both rebelling against the environment we were slowly growing up in that it made us so much alike. In a town where white-pride isn't just common, more like a way of life, we were just a couple of 12 year old kids looking for an escape. What's strange about growing up in a small town is that it encourages a sense of self-value, independence, and creativity which can be lost in large towns or cities. I mean, if you " re not doing something creative in our town, what the hell else would you be doing? So, Nate and I developed a VERY similar sense of humor. A dry sense of humor that I assume no one else really appreciated because we didn't have all that many other friends.

We entered middle school with hopes of new experiences and meeting new interesting people. This was when I met Jeff, my other life-long-hetero friend. Jeff and I played hockey together when we were eight. He quit, and I hadn't seen him since. Once I introduced him to Nate, we all became very close friends. Finally the day came that every 16 year old dreams about.

Jeff and I got our licenses. We were both a little older than most people in our graduating class, so we were a couple of the lucky kids. And on top of that, we both had very nice cars. Mine a blue, '96, Pontiac Grande Am, and his a blue, '94, Chevy Silverado pick up. Life was good. This is the part of my life I replay in my head most frequently.

It was a cool summer night. I was hanging out with Nate, bored as usual, when Jeff stopped by with some interesting news. 'An abandoned stretch of 95!' He said with excitement. 'I found where it is this morning. ' Without second thoughts Nate and I hopped into my car and followed Jeff to what he had promised to be a 'great time'.

We drove through a well hidden, off road trail and finally arrived. It was everything we had hoped for. Two lanes of perfectly straight asphalt that stretched about a mile to a mile and a half. So what else are three immature guys to do? Race. Nate and I buckled our safety belts (a life saving maneuver) as Jeff pulled up next to us.

With his fingers he slowly signaled 1-2-3. I stomped on the gas. I heard my four exhaust pipes roar, the engine growling, almost beast-like, then the tires screeched in compliance as our car jumped forward and took off, leaving a cloud of smoke behind while Nate approvingly yelled, hooting and hollering with every loud sound the car was emitting. In about three seconds I had caught up with Jeff, in about three more seconds he was two dots in my rear view mirror. I remember seeing complete blackness and then branches from what I came to find out was a large dead tree. I cut the wheel hard, not knowing where we were about to go next.

I hit the brakes, but got no response. It was too late. I was lifted out of my seat, I felt the seatbelt tighten, it felt like someone standing on my chest as the seatbelt dug in, pressing hard against my heart. Everything went black. I came to, probably not long after the crash, and from what I could see, bleeding profusely from my ear and either my mouth, nose, or both. I couldn't tell.

I looked towards Nate. His eyes were closed. His seat, twisted towards me pinning his leg under the dash board, and he was bleeding. A lot.

Worse than I was. I could hardly see his thick goatee through the streaming blood. I grabbed his shoulder and tried saying his name, it sounded horrible. I looked towards the windshield. We had driven through a wire fence which came apart and cut through the top of the windshield and most of my car. I began to sweat.

A terror sweat. From the kind of heat that you can feel come over you, like when your brain realizes you " re about to be in deep shit, then cues your body to react accordingly. But it wasn't the trouble I would get in that was worrying me. Nate lie there motionless.

I could hear Jeff's frantic screams and footsteps from outside, but I was in too much shock to reply. How could this happen to Nate? The kid I grew up with? This is the kid I went to my first concert with. The kid who would never ditch me for cooler friends, or talk about me behind my back, or do anything to harm me. Is this real?

He's really gone and this is solely MY fault. It all seemed so unbelievable. Just then Nate slowly opened his eyes and raised his head. His eyes were all teary, like he had been crying. He was looking in my direction, but not really focusing on anything, as if he had just rolled out of bed. I yelled his name, very relieved and happy.

The passenger side door swung open, it was Jeff, I hadn't realized it, but the car had landed on it's side, driver's side down. "HOLY SHIT! I THOUGHT YOU GUYS WERE DEAD!' The first words I heard from my also, very relieved friend. 'You guys have to get out of here!' He grabbed Nate by his arm and helped him out of the car, then me. I looked at Nate, he was clutching his chest from a deep cut he got from the seat belt, I was almost too ashamed to look directly at him, his face covered in blood. He looked at me and said "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have egged you on, I'm sorry".

Before I could respond Jeff interjected, "Nah, I shouldn't have taken you guys down here, this was a stupid idea, I'm an idiot. I'm just so glad you guys aren't dead". I couldn't believe this, I screwed up, almost killing one of my best friends and here they were trying to make excuses for MY mistake. The car was totaled, we drove through a fence, hit a tree and then a mound of dirt which was what tossed the car on its side. The backseat had collapsed, everything in the trunk was now in the front of the car.

Most of it hitting Nate on the way there. We stood there. Quiet. In shock from all the life lessons we had just learned in about 5 seconds. You could almost feel the childhood slip away. It was then that I realized how lucky I was to have such great friends, and how precious life really is, and how it can be altered, permanently, so quickly.

I'll think about this night every once in awhile. It reminds me how happy I should be to still be alive.