i attend inner-city houston public school. i guess we;ve kind of grown to accept death in classmates or whatever. kids get shot in gang fights now and then, my friend shot herself my sophomore year, one kid died during football practice, several die of alcohol related accidents, then there;s the cancer deaths. i was in a near-death situation last year (mid march-ish, 2001) and was out for 3 weeks but all the school sent home were a 500$ fine for excessive unexcused absences and fax homework from my spanish teacher.
oh yeah, and on a kind of bitter/etc side, when someone died of automobile accidnet last year (flew through the windshield) his close friends were going to plant a tree in the school garden in his memorial, but the school wouldnt allow them unless they plant trees for EVERY dead students.
i;ve never really lived throgh anyone's death except for my friends. my grandfather died when i was 2, but other than him no deaths in immdiate family.