Day 20 - Your views on drugs and alcohol

I will be honest upfront.  I have drank alcohol, I drank before I was 21, but I never did anything more than that.

Growing up I watched what my uncle went through with his drug addictions.  He would spend time at our house trying to get clean.  He stole from us, he lied. I saw what it did to my mom and her family.  It was very difficult.  I prayed for him all the time that he would clean up and get back on track.  I made a pact with one of my cousins when I was like 12 to not use drugs since it scared me.

In high school some friends smoked weed and I was tempted of course, but I didn't because I knew I didn't want to end up like my uncle and I also wanted a career with the Federal Government.  I was willing to risk that little bit of fun for something I knew would make me happier later on in life.  I never smoked a cigarette either, I saw what it did to my friends/sister and that I didn't want to become addicted. I was also worried that smoking cigarettes might lead to weed which would lead to something harder. Instead of eventually liking something so much and becoming addicted, I thought it would be easier to just avoid it.

I suppose the peer pressure wasn't that bad.  No one really tried to force it on me, but they didn't ignore it either.  If anything, my friends respected it more than my sister and cousins who tried a few times to get me to smoke.  Fast forward 15 years and I still never touched it.  I also never got that job in the Federal government...so I could have done it, but I don't regret not doing it.

My uncle did eventually clean himself up. He just had his 14th anniversary!  It wasn't easy - and thank goodness my extended family and my mom never gave up on him.  Every year I attend his anniversary NA meeting supporting him.  I sit and listen to the horrible stories they tell and reflect how happy I am that I never had to go through what they went through.  I can't even imagine a life like that.

So, I think drugs are bad.  Smoking is bad.  Drinking is bad if that is also an addiction, but the social drink here and there, I am OK with that.