He told his brother, who was at the gathering, and asked him to leave as well, but his brother declined. This asthma attack was like no other he had experienced, him wanting to leave proved he knew something was seriously wrong. Breathing seems like such a simple task, most of the time I do not even think about this involuntary action taking place. That night my cousin just could not get enough air "the thing he lacked to ensure his survival. .
My aunt awoke from the couch, I remember her saying later she thought the sirens were for the neighbors. She could never have dreamed a patrol car had found her son dead on the sidewalk. He was found with his inhaler clutched tightly in his hand, and I can only imagine him gasping for air but not being able to fill his lungs. The doctors told us it was an acute asthma attack; nothing could have saved him- except for taking better care of his body. No one with asthma should be smoking marijuana. That was the one thing that may have prevented this tragedy. .
Some of the decisions my cousin made for himself were not the best. The abuse he put on his body is partially what caused it to fail. If only he would have taken care of himself more. If only someone would have stepped in and got him help. I came to a point where I had to stop thinking about the "what if's?-, which left me to focus on the why? Why did no one know? What drove my cousin to use drugs? Why in this country was a sixteen year old able to access marijuana? As time past, life became easier. I was able to learn and evaluate from this tragedy after I sorted out my feelings. I also began to think what if it was me? What if my time on earth were suddenly cut short? At sixteen you have your whole life ahead of you, so much to look forward to. After going through this experience, I am angered that my cousin was subjected to marijuana and cannot help think how his life would be different if stricter drug control laws existed.