When I can't read the newspaper daily, I'm selective in what I make an effort to read. I'll scan the letters to the editor, read over the headlines for local and international, and flip over to the comics to take a look at a couple of my favorites and start the day with a laugh. It could be seen as a somewhat pathetic routine, I know, but I value laughter in any given day, and the past few weeks' school assignments haven't been offering much opportunity for daily laughter.  So I read and I laugh, and then turn to the daily news. Today, it would've probably been better if I'd shifted that order.

I was standing in the kitchen, eating cereal between chuckles over Rhymes With Orange's "Star Wars" tribute when Mom began rifling through the stack of material yet to be read and pulled out the front page.  It didn't take a word from her. As soon as I saw the headline, my heart sank. "Wedding Day Veers From Joy to Horror."

I took the paper from her slowly, almost reverently, as if reading it that way would make it untrue. But the story remained. A young couple was getting married. Four hours before the ceremony, as the bride was preparing herself and her bridesmaids in the hotel, the groom and his groomsmen were hit whilst driving near the airport. The groom wasn't buckled up and was thrown from the car.  His wedding became his memorial service. And all because he and his friends happened to be at the intersection where one man decided to run a red-light.

Further inside the paper was another story. "Friends, Family Mourn Ballerina." A bright, promising 20 year old who had just been accepted to the state-level school of dance was killed while driving a road I've driven frequently. It was 8:35 in the evening. The man who hit her car was drunk, driving 85 mph in a 45 zone.  And the scariest thing is, at that time of night, it could've been anyone. He could've killed an entire family just as easily as he killed this one beloved girl.

It struck me as ringing so true of this society we've built up within the past few generations. These people who drive drunk and run red-lights, they must honestly have thought they were only taking their own lives into their hands.  How selfish can you be to knowingly endanger so many? It's not just your live you're risking when you drive impaired (and yes, aggressive driving is an impairment). You risk families and parents, children and siblings, partners and spouses. And all for one reckless driver.

I was on my way to work a few days ago when someone almost ran me off the road. We were in a two lane exit onto the highway, him on the outside and me on the inside, and there was no space for him to merge between me and the car in front of me. I couldn't stop either because the driver behind me was practically sitting on my bumper. The car in the outside lane raced up his lane like he thought he would get in sooner if he raced us to the merge point, but he and I reached it at exactly the same time. Still having no where to go, I started looking toward the highway to exit off, but not before the driver in the outside lane came straight for my passenger side. He couldn't have been more than half a foot away from crushing right into my front passenger door. And as I hurriedly swerved off the exit and onto the highway, all he could do was make rude gestures as if I'd done the wrong thing being where I was. Naturally, I returned the gestures and added a few of my own, but my heart didn't stop pounding for several miles. He'd been in a van, and I was only in a little sedan. He could've done real damage if he'd hit at the speed with which he was racing up the lane.  He could've even pushed me out into oncoming traffic if he'd hit hard enough.

We had it drilled into us in Driver's Ed: "As much as you must be aware of your own driving habits, you must be twice as aware of the others drivers. You can control what you do on the road, but only react to how others are driving." And it's true, I know. Drivers are drivers are drivers. No matter where I go, there will be idiots who jeopardize others to get where they're going. It's just... never seemed so real before. I've always worried for my family and friend's safety on the road, but I've never myself come so close to being hit.

What have we done to our drivers? When did it become page 6 news for a young woman to be killed by a drunk driver? It's outrageous. And it's rocked me to my very core.

"I am not a safe driver for me, but for you, your family, and all those you hold dear, that you may never have to experience losing them because of me."

Early work today, and possibly earlier early work tomorrow. The clock won't allow me anymore time writing before leaving, because I was silly and am waiting on lunch as we speak. -__-;; I wants to take Lucario with me....

Ah, well. Hope everyone's days are going well out there. Take care, and be safe. I'll talk to y'all again soon, hopefully tonight.

Dear daughter,

I know it's early yet to be writing to you, and likely prideful of me to assume I can know I'll even ever have you. But you know me. I'm hopeful to a fault sometimes, and I cannot help but imagine meeting you when I'm much older, hearing you learn to speak, handing you to your father for the first time and seeing the look of enchantment on his face as he sees the child who shall always be his little girl. It's any parent's joy to watch their child grow, but daughter, I must admit we all bring children home with some list of things we expect to teach you and make second-nature. I'll never tell you that you must be one thing or another, but I will always want you to be at least this - a lady.

Contrary to popular belief (and again, I'm assuming as strong an opinion in your world as it is in mine today), you can be anything and still be a lady. Being a lady isn't about not speaking unless spoken to or becoming a doormat, and it's most certainly not about being a girly-girl rather than a geek or a goth or a tom-boy. No, a lady is simply someone who ascribes to the fact that manners are a way of showing people we acknowledge and respect them, even just as fellow human-beings. She will try to make it so people around her are comfortable as possible.

You're probably reading through this and thinking I'm crazy, aren't you? Or perhaps wondering where this all came from? Well, it's a long story. When I was 21, I went out with my compatriots from work for a weekend, and within a few hours of piling into the car, I began writing this letter to you. Call it obsessive planning or an attempt to take meaning out of such a terrible experience, but really, as I watched women twice my age curse and smoke and drink and just be generally awful, offensive people, my mind kept going to you, and I was terrified that I might forget to tell you all this. Neither your father nor I would want to raise someone to act like those women, I can tell you that even now.

I am fighting to keep myself from writing "I want you to be..." because I know how hard it is to grow with pre-formed expectations of you, but honestly, daughter, I do "want you to be"... whoever you want to be, and a lady atop it all.  If you won't wear a dress to save your life and your idea of fun is rough-housing with kids from down the street, go for it. Just be considerate of your friends. If you will wear nothing but pink and force your father and I to play tea-party to the point of madness, I may be a bit loony by the end of the day, but guess what? It won't change how much I love you. Just remember the world doesn't operate on your schedule, and we'll want to do other things than serve tea all day. And if you memorize the Star Trek and Star Wars franchises, or want to dress up as a different anime character every day, I will support you as much as I would've otherwise. But you must remember not everyone will think such things are fantastic uses of your time. Enjoy them, but never thrust them upon people. Share them with those who want to share it.

Live in a way you'll be happy with yourself, daughter; more than anything else, that's what I most want to beg of you. It's easy to believe the end justifies the means, but I never want you to be one of those people who comes to the end of the road, wishing they hadn't said this or done that. Life is best lived by a code of honor, at least to those who live as makes them happy. What's your code, daughter? It's your life. Be who you want to be, but never forget the people around you. We love you; all that we ask is that you treat any person as a person worthy of your consideration - just like a true lady.

Sincerely
(Sparky)

P.S. Accepting the possibility genes may well go wonky and produce only sons, I'd like to state for the record that I will edit this if that is the reality of things. Believe me, son, I don't imagine you wearing only pink or playing tea-party. That would be a tad traumatic for so early an age, don't you agree? If, however, you find this before I can edit it, do me a favor. Your dad is likely outside practicing with the katana we gave him for Christmas (or trying to teach your sister how to guard). Go practice with them, while I take this letter back and rework some of the passages. I'll call you when I'm done, I promise. :p

---

I don't think I've ever been teased so much for being polite as I was this past weekend. Much as Mom and I argue sometimes, I can say this about her - she has raised Hime and me to be ladies. Ladies who like combat boots, action films, geeky things, and Visual Kei clothing, perhaps, but ladies nonetheless.

Ah, there's so much I could say about this weekend, but I won't for fear of sounding like a complaintive bundle of nerves to be easily lit upon. Also, I've medicine I need to take before work - writing, too, unless the office calls me in for an emergency again. Hope everyone's weekends went well. ^_______^ Take care today, and I'll talk to y'all again soon.