I had a friend of a friend who I’ll call Derrick. I first met Derrick in 2015 when he was the best man at my friend’s wedding. Derrick and my friend were college roommates and they played football together. Derrick went on to play in the NFL after they both graduated. He was a talented singer and guitar player and he sang at the reception. He was good looking, charismatic, and easy to talk to. Derrick had the attention of all the single ladies at the party which was something he was used to. I met him a few more times over the years and kept up with his life through stories my friend told me.
I was eagerly reading along waiting to hear how this guy fouled up everything and then bounced back with knowledge and wisdom to be a blessing to society and stuff.
I hope I don't come off as a sadist in this piece. This was an opinion piece I wrote for my local newspaper so it had a 700 word limit. I should have elaborated more for the Substack version but I'm lazy and not very talented so I just used the original. I never wished harm or bad fortune for "Derrick". In fact, to the degree I knew him I liked him very much. I wish he would have made better choices and had a happy and fulfilled life, but like 100,000 other Americans each year, his choices led to his death by a fentanyl overdose.
The secondary purpose of the article is to highlight the tragedy of the opioid crisis and how it can destroy even super talented, charming, and wealthy professional athletes. The main purpose was to draw a comparison between this talented person who was full of potential and the State of California with all its natural advantages and to illustrate how bad decisions can destroy the best of what we have. I have taken more criticism for this piece than anything else I have written so maybe I missed the mark. Just to reiterate, I really liked "Derrick" and I think it was a tragedy he died so early and in the manner he did. I don't enjoy seeing people suffer especially when it is so unnecessary. Thanks for reading!
damn you, Travis.
I was eagerly reading along waiting to hear how this guy fouled up everything and then bounced back with knowledge and wisdom to be a blessing to society and stuff.
nope.
not today, not for Brea!
😂😂😂sorry Brea! Not today. I’ll try to get some lighter stuff out soon. Thanks for reading!
Fuckin Vince lmao
I hope I don't come off as a sadist in this piece. This was an opinion piece I wrote for my local newspaper so it had a 700 word limit. I should have elaborated more for the Substack version but I'm lazy and not very talented so I just used the original. I never wished harm or bad fortune for "Derrick". In fact, to the degree I knew him I liked him very much. I wish he would have made better choices and had a happy and fulfilled life, but like 100,000 other Americans each year, his choices led to his death by a fentanyl overdose.
The secondary purpose of the article is to highlight the tragedy of the opioid crisis and how it can destroy even super talented, charming, and wealthy professional athletes. The main purpose was to draw a comparison between this talented person who was full of potential and the State of California with all its natural advantages and to illustrate how bad decisions can destroy the best of what we have. I have taken more criticism for this piece than anything else I have written so maybe I missed the mark. Just to reiterate, I really liked "Derrick" and I think it was a tragedy he died so early and in the manner he did. I don't enjoy seeing people suffer especially when it is so unnecessary. Thanks for reading!