09/19/1997

TRAGEDY PUTS LIFE INTO PERSPECTIVE

The tragedy of Amanda Quinto, 18, who passed away on Wednesday night, was felt throughout the group of teenage mourners who had gathered that same night at Page Park to honor her life and accomplishments. The mood was somber, and the air was filled with anything but silence as wails and cries of -why Mandy' were cast from the group as a whole.
I attended the candle vigil, but did not cluster together with the group around the heart-shaped figured that had been made of the candles that had been brought by the group. Instead I watched them from a short distance as I held my candle and said a silent prayer for Mandy. I was not one of her closest friends, and we never went out together. I met her for the first time as a senior in Bristol Eastern High school in a class we shared when we were assigned a project together. And although I did not know much about her, I felt that the little time we shared was enough reason for me to pay my respects.
At one point, a reporter from The Bristol Press had been present interviewing many of her friends, and I was surprised to see that this angered many people. They felt it was disrespectful and they made it seem as though the reporter's presence had been an intrusion on a private ceremony. I believe, however, that it was right for The Bristol Press to be there, because through them Mandy could be remembered as the person she was instead of just another name in the paper.
At one point a photographer approached me and asked me if he could take a picture of me holding my candle. I told him that a picture of the whole group would be more appropriate.
It may be hard for many people to understand, but the assembly of people that huddled around the candles, crying uncontrollably, had not just gathered as a group of Mandy's friends. They had also gathered as a group of teenagers. A group that had just lost a part of themselves. Someone their own age. And for a moment, all petty differences were put aside as this group of teenagers tries desperately to console each other. And life for them was put into perspective. And from this day on I believe they will all in one way or another treasure every minute they have. Because they all realized that on the night of September 13, 1997, the night of the accident, Amanda Quinto, 18, certainly did not plan this tragedy. It's just a shame that it takes something like this to open the eyes of others.

BRYAN PENA, Bristol
The writer graduated from Eastern this year. He is an award-winning former member of The Tattoo, a student journalism group sponsored by The Bristol Press.