"Did You Know?"

I wanted to add a note to let you know that Mary was coming back from visitation of a young man who had died. Read this poem as if Mary is asking the questions to the drunk driver who took her young life.

"Did you know?"
A poem by Rose Couey
Written about her daughter, Mary Couey,
who was killed March 31, 2009 in a DUI crash

Did you know when you started the engine that night
You’d change the world forever?

Did you know when you put the truck in gear
You’d destroy the hearts of many?

Did you know when you said good bye to your friends
My family and friends would cry endlessly?

Did you know when you thought you were ok to drive
Your truck turned into a weapon?

Did you know when your head shook to clear your vision
My eyes had been crying for the loss of a friend?

Did you know when you turned on the truck lights
They’d be the last thing I ever saw?

Did you know when you opened the window for fresh air
I would draw my last breath that night?

Did you know when you thought you were driving ok
I was on my way home to see my brother?

Did you know when your eyes were getting heavy
I was only ten miles from my front door?

Did you know when you took some deep breaths to focus
I was thinking about my wedding day?

Did you know when you crossed that center line
I was thinking about the love of my life?

Did you know when you crashed into my car
I was dead a second later?

Did you know when you sat on the side of the road
What you had actually done?

Did you know when you started the engine that night
You’d change the world forever?