I remember my mom coming over on July 29, 2009; we were supposed to be going out for dinner to celebrate my birthday. I didn't notice at first that she was acting funny, then I caught it. The glimmer in her eye that she was upset. She tried to smile quickly to cover it when she saw I noticed, but it was too late. "What's wrong?" She was so upset, "I don't even want to tell you," she blurted in a voice quivering with tears. I definitely wasn't expecting what came next. Shane. My cousin, who I thought I knew, but figured out too late, really didn't. He'd been in a bad skateboarding accident. He was already gone by this point but my poor grandma didn't have the heart to tell my mom yet. She told me he "might be brain dead." She was so hopeful over dinner (NOT a birthday celebration, just a quick jaunt somewhere nearby so the kids could eat). I knew deep down there was nothing to be hopeful for. "Can we call mom again," she asked when we got back to my house. Of course I wanted to, I was eager that there was a decent prognosis but I just had a feeling there was not. I knew immediately it was bad as my mom blurted, "Oh, mom!" and started crying hysterically. I couldn't believe it. It felt like one of those crazy stories you read in Reader's Digest and feel so terrible for the family but never think anything like it could happen to someone you know. I was so upset, he was by far Trent's favorite of my relatives and he didn't take it well. I sat on my kitchen floor crying, "he's just a kid, he's just a kid." After staying up nearly all night, then awaking the next day to the thought, "Shane Braselton is dead" immediately haunting me, the thought that I couldn't shake next was for my aunt and uncle. I was profoundly overwhelmed with grief that they had lost their child.
Lot's of good came from losing Shane. He was an organ donor, so right now, there are people who live because he did not. His small town, Craig, CO, hosts "lid jam" at the end of July, offering free helmets to people who pledge to always wear them. My aunt and uncle and other cousins, his older brother, sister, and sister in law, are amazingly strong people. He has a nephew now who shares his middle name. Shane definitely is not forgotten! Especially not today. Happy Birthday, Shane! I know many people wish you were still here to celebrate it.
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