2008 Woodie Awards
Give yourself the chance of tomorrow
By: Emily Sparr
Issue date: 9/5/08 Section: Opinion
The last time I saw Adam was in January. We had all gotten together to have drinks at Addie's, a local pub in Greenville. Adam was excited because he had just graduated from Clemson and was looking for a job. He had moved back in with his mother temporarily to get on his feet. Although nervous about getting a job, Adam seemed in high spirits, and we had a great night hanging out with our friends.
Last Thursday, I received a call from my brother. At first I couldn't hear him well, then I realized he was crying. I panicked. Finally he pulled himself together enough to say, "Adam hung himself." I was overwhelmed in the moment, started to cry and scream. I couldn't believe that our friend had killed himself. It was surreal.
Adam, 23, was an intelligent and witty kind of guy. He was always intimidatingly informed about the news and politics.
I remember feeling out of my league when the conversation would lean towards those topics, but Adam didn't use that information to make me feel bad; he was trying to inform me about the world outside Clemson.
He would give me suggestions and feedback about what The Tiger was working on. Once he even wrote a beautiful classified about used sex toys that we decided probably shouldn't run.
I first got to know Adam when we were in high school. Adam was a quiet guy in big crowds and it took me a while to really get to know him. But once I did, I realized he was a witty guy. He was always trying to entertain people.
My favorite Adam story is from our senior year in high school. We all decided to dress up for Halloween. Everyone went all out with costumes.
We had cowboys, cowgirls, Ninja Turtles, Ghostbusters, a friar and our friend Katie dressed up like our friend John. Adam on the other hand was a thrifty kind of guy. He threw on a tweed jacket and calling himself a professor.
Later that night, we went house to house to get some candy. Every door we went to a mom would be tickled that 17-year-olds were trick-or-treating, and they would guess what each costume was supposed to be. Every one of them guessed Adam was Harry Potter. Adam hated it.
Last Thursday, I received a call from my brother. At first I couldn't hear him well, then I realized he was crying. I panicked. Finally he pulled himself together enough to say, "Adam hung himself." I was overwhelmed in the moment, started to cry and scream. I couldn't believe that our friend had killed himself. It was surreal.
Adam, 23, was an intelligent and witty kind of guy. He was always intimidatingly informed about the news and politics.
I remember feeling out of my league when the conversation would lean towards those topics, but Adam didn't use that information to make me feel bad; he was trying to inform me about the world outside Clemson.
He would give me suggestions and feedback about what The Tiger was working on. Once he even wrote a beautiful classified about used sex toys that we decided probably shouldn't run.
I first got to know Adam when we were in high school. Adam was a quiet guy in big crowds and it took me a while to really get to know him. But once I did, I realized he was a witty guy. He was always trying to entertain people.
My favorite Adam story is from our senior year in high school. We all decided to dress up for Halloween. Everyone went all out with costumes.
We had cowboys, cowgirls, Ninja Turtles, Ghostbusters, a friar and our friend Katie dressed up like our friend John. Adam on the other hand was a thrifty kind of guy. He threw on a tweed jacket and calling himself a professor.
Later that night, we went house to house to get some candy. Every door we went to a mom would be tickled that 17-year-olds were trick-or-treating, and they would guess what each costume was supposed to be. Every one of them guessed Adam was Harry Potter. Adam hated it.
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 3
Lucy Beam Hoffman
posted 9/07/08 @ 9:24 AM EST
This is an important and courageous story. The author revealed herself and her own pain in the discussion of Adam. The loss of a young vibrant person is more of a tragedy than any of us can imagine. (Continued…)
Someone
posted 9/07/08 @ 11:33 PM EST
I can relate to a lot of what you talk about here. This is a fantastic piece.
Aki Carpenter
posted 9/13/08 @ 12:17 PM EST
Hi Emily,
What a beautiful article --- so full of such great memories of Adam. I think it's really strong of you to write this article for others to read. (Continued…)
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