Frustration

I didn't sleep well last night and this morning my appetite was completely gone. I was not hungry for the entire day and was plagued by some pretty intense lethargy, body aches, and headache. Farang Fever, as it is known. No big deal, I consider it practice in thankfulness. How is it possible for me to complain about illness having had great health for the whole month?

My frustration did not come from being sick, from kids continually being disobedient, from kids shouting at all hours. My frustration certainly did not come from the completely random torrential rain that is still going on as I type. For the past 8 years, one teacher told me, it has NEVER rained during the dry season. Some people consider it a strange coincidence - the dark clouds in the sky correspond to the dark cloud that has descended over this school due to recent events.

Chris Beatty was a 23 year old Canadian who lived one floor below me. Last Friday I went with Chris to help chaperon the high school kids on a trip to a local resort to order desserts. We got to talk and joke around, he was a really fun kid. I say "was" because 2 days later he hopped on his moto and attempted to drive back home drunk. He fell off his bike that night not wearing a helmet. The impact, among other things, fractured his skull causing internal bleeding in the brain - his brain stem ceased to function. For a few days he remained brain dead in a hospital in Chiang Mai before his family arrived and pulled him off life support.

Today I found a memorial group on Facebook dedicated to celebrating his life. There was a post that invited people in Canada to meet at a bar and drink to celebrate his life. To be honest I felt furious for a second. "You want to celebrate this man's life by using the drug that killed him?!", I said out loud to myself. How horrifying. Here's some stats:

5% of all deaths from diseases of the circulatory system are attributed to alcohol.
15% of all deaths from diseases of the respiratory system are attributed to alcohol.
30% of all deaths from accidents caused by fire and flames are attributed to alcohol.
30% of all accidental drownings are attributed to alcohol.
30% of all suicides are attributed to alcohol.
40% of all deaths due to accidental falls are attributed to alcohol.
45% of all deaths in automobile accidents are attributed to alcohol.
60% of all homicides are attributed to alcohol.

Approximately 100,000 people die from alcohol each year. What can I say? This is my frustration.

Why don't I drink? Because alcohol wrecks lives, tears friends and family apart, and commits murder. Alcohol has nearly claimed the life of my brother, and it just took the life of a close friend. I don't support that drug.