Limited Potential

This week is Red Ribbon Week. According to www.redribbon.org, Red Ribbon Week is “the nation’s largest and longest-running drug-use prevention campaign.” The campaign is sponsored by an organization called National Family Partnership, whose mission is to “lead and support our nation’s families and communities in nurturing the full potential of healthy, drug free youth.”

This is a message that I believe is very important. I have seen the effects of druguse ravish through this community since I was in the fifth grade, and I’m sure it’s reaching grades even lower than that nowadays, which is absolutely tragic. In the fifth grade, I experienced my first encounter with the reality of drugs when a classmate brought them to school, wrapped in little pieces of foil. I was shocked to say the least, and the encounters didn’t stop there.

There was always some distance between myself and these things because of the people I chose to surround myself with. However, by the time I got to high school, the temptation of drug-use began to seep even into my close circle of friends. From freshman year to senior year, it was becoming almost impossible to say that there was no one who was doing drugs or had ever done them. My senior year alone, I believe there were three overdose or drug-related health issues that occurred to students while they were in the bathrooms. We stayed in the classrooms until emergency services were able to come and take them out of the school on a stretcher. Many of my friends still went on to be high achievers and do great things, but there were also many who lost their motivation and didn’t really care about school or anything anymore because of drugs.

I make these observations not out of judgement, because none of us are perfect, but out of love and concern for this issue, because it is an issue. There were many that made excuses for the drug-use by saying that the drugs they were doing weren’t that bad. They would compare what they did to stuff like meth, and think it wasn’t the same; bringing up facts about “gateway drugs” never seemed to make a difference. It is true that different drugs have different effects, but the way I see it, it doesn’t matter.

That sounds harsh, but here is my logic. I believe there is a version of ourselves — of our heart, our mind, our personality — that has reached our full potential. In my opinion, as a person of faith, that version of ourselves is the person who God intended and created us to be. Now will we ever reach that absolute perfect version of ourselves in this lifetime? No, but we can certainly get close or at least spend our lives trying to be a better person than we were the day before. So to me, if there’s anything that is going to hold me back from pursuing that version of myself, then I don’t want any part of it.

Drugs may never impact one person the way they impact another. They may never take one person down the path of addiction the way they have another. But do they get you any closer to the person you’re meant to be? Do they add any true benefit to your life? Do they bring clarity or peace of mind? Some say that drugs reduce their anxiety, but so does exercising, vitamin supplements, aromatherapy, journaling, breathing exercises, listening to music, spending time with family and friends, or spending time with God.

Because of the things I’ve seen personally, I just think that there are zero authentic or permanent benefits to using drugs. They might bring relief to some in a moment, but the serious consequences last much longer. They block judgment, harm one’s physical and mental health, and ultimately hold people back from reaching their fullest potential. Drugs are just not worth it.

One moment of a high feeling is not worth hurting your brain and body, losing friends, and opening up the door to years of addiction. Drugs are not worth holding back a future generation of doctors, teachers, nurses, mechanics, therapists, and people who could help others. The person God created you to be, the version of yourself that has reached their full potential, is amazing and capable of doing big things. Embrace that, embrace the journey that comes with it, and don’t make decisions that will hold you back. You are too valuable, and no drug is worth that oh-so-bright future. I write all of this with so much love in my heart because I have seen the impact of drugs and it is not pretty. I want so much more for the youth in this community and in every community. So please, for yourself and those that love you and believe in you, acknowledge your worth, make the choice, and live drug free.

Happy Red Ribbon Week, Cibola!