D.A.R.E

D.A.R.E. Have you ever imagined your future? I try to do this all the time. Most of us will follow in our parents footsteps, by this I mean our adult lives will closely resemble the lives we live as children, set by our parents examples. Have you ever stopped and thought about this? What an awesome job it must be to raise a child properly. But, what happens to the children that live with drugs, alcohol and violence in their home? Where do they their good examples? I know of one place that is trying to reach all children. It is the McDowell County D.A.R.E. Program in McDowell County North Carolina.It is sponsored by the school system and the sheriffs department.Our teacher Officer Randy Slagle, carries on his shoulders the great responsibility of teaching kids to just say NO to drugs and alcohol and violence. I am personally aquainted with all three of these things, not because I have ever tried them myself, but because of my dad. He used each of these things on a regular basis.

He drank, took drugs,smoked pot and was abusive. When I was 7 years old my mom took me, my sister and baby brother and left. I wonder if when my dad first started experimenting with drugs and pot at the age of 13 if he ever thought about the consequences and what this bad decision would lead to. He has been in rehab, in jail, he can't get a decent job, he lost his family and he has nothing to show for the last 25 years of his life. These bad choices also caused him to hurt his children in horrible ways. God expects us to take care of our bodies and keep them healthy. Being a christian also means that I am accountable for all the actions I take. I am lucky that I have at leasst one parent to help me make wise decisions, and to teach me right from wrong. I am also grateful that the D.A.R.E. program is taught in our schools. One of the most important things I learned from D.A.R.E. and Officer Slagle, is that a person that has a parent with an addiction problem, is more than twice as likely to become addicted themselves, as compared to a person that has no family history of drug abuse.

This really caused bells to go off in my head. This means that if I ever give in to peer pressure and try drugs, I could become addicted easier than someone else. Why would anybody take this chance? I have learned many things through this program, especially about the consequences of our actions. You could get arrested, hurt yourself or someone else, destroy your life by becoming an addict, or even die. All of these things are terrible , but I can't think of anything worse as a parent or as us kids as future parents than hurting our children and the people that love us. DRUGS DESTROY LIVES! I give the D.A.R.E. Program 2 thumbs up, for all the good things being accomplished. 6th grade student at Nebo Elementary School, McDowell County, North Carolina