So many times when we celebrate Red Ribbon Week we only think about not taking drugs. Students get tired of the no, don’t do that message. They want to hear something else. Well, if you think about it this should be a week to celebrate freedom. If we don’t take drugs then we have a lot of freedoms that we can cherish.
Some of those freedoms that we should be talking to them about is the freedom from being tied to a very dangerous habit. Not taking drugs helps us enjoy the freedom from dying from an overdose. Another freedom we have is the freedom from having the urge
to steal to feed a horrible habit. How about celebrating the freedom from having something or someone else control our life. Then there is the freedom from illness and sickness caused by living in filthy conditions because we really don’t care. Also, we should include in these freedoms the freedom from illnesses that are related to drug, alcohol, and tobacco abuse. Last of all we are free to age naturally instead of rapidly.
Remember that we could emphasis the yes, can, do all the healthy things that are not related to taking drugs, drinking or abusing tobacco. We should spend a lot of time teaching the students what freedoms they will enjoy if they stay off of drugs. Here is a list of some of the things people would be free to do.
Free to have healthy bodies that can exercise and move as they should. If we stay off of drugs then our bodies will be healthier and we will probably live a lot longer on this earth. Clean lungs that are tobacco free take in lots more oxygen with less exertion than dirty lungs that have to work overtime to do the same job. When we do not take drugs, use alcohol or abuse tobacco we have control over what our bodies are doing and how they feel.
Free from being imprisoned in jails and penitentiaries because of breaking the law of the land. Many drug users blame society, but students need to have it pointed out to them that people that break the law chose to be where they are and it is their own fault not societies fault.
When we abstain from drugs, alcohol and tobacco we have the freedom to have control over our minds and our speech. We will not easily be controlled by others who know we are only functioning with part of our ability. We will be able to control what we say and how we say it without making fools of ourselves.
The use of drugs restricts our freedoms and this concept needs to be pointed out to our students. They need to know the pluses to not taking drugs besides the negatives about taking drugs. So take the time to let students see that when they choose not to take drugs they choose freedom. This can be done by using a play showing all the things that you can do.
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