more than anything, he wanted to be "a cool teenager," he said, and for a time it seemed possible. he wore long pants, and no one asked him questions.
but nearly 10 years after the shooting, he realized that he would never be normal. taking out the trash one evening, he was overcome with the feeling that he was going to be attacked. he knew then that he needed to start talking about what had happened that day so long ago.
"the only control i can have," he says, "is the understanding that i have no control." 