“Drink! Drink! Drink!” But I resisted !!!

In high school, I would go out with my friends, and sometimes I would drink a little—a sip of beer here, another there. I would just do what the others were doing, and I didn't even like it that much. During that time I began to study Christian Science, and I simply stopped drinking. Drinking was not what I really wanted. I felt it wasn't right for me, and it wasn't difficult to stop.

When I got to college, the upperclassmen took me to a bar, along with the other freshmen. I didn't want to drink anything alcoholic, so I asked for a soda. But an upperclassman gave me a glass of “pinga,” a cheap kind of hard liquor. I refused, but he said, “Drink!”

I answered, “No.”

Then the others who were with him started to chant out loud, “Drink! Drink! Drink!” With that, everybody in the bar started to scream, “Drink! Drink!”

Immediately a little voice said to me, “Come on, take a little sip. Everybody's looking at you. It won't hurt.”

But I didn't listen to these thoughts. I stood firm and didn't drink. Little by little, the people stopped shouting and let me be.

Then I started to think about my reasons for not drinking. I like to be always alert, willing and ready to pray, to turn my thought to God, to help someone. That's why you've got to stay sober and steady, and not to allow anything to dull your thought. I don't in any way want alcohol to alter my thinking, not even a little bit.

When we are receptive to ideas from God, we are able to act intelligently. I even tell my friends that you don't have to drink to feel good and more relaxed. You can feel happy, free, and not be self-conscious, without the use of alcohol. You don't have to drink to be happy. Happiness is natural to God's child.

My friends usually meet in the bar across the street from our university, to drink beer. I often go with them, but I order soda or juice, or I just talk to them.

One day when we were in the bar, one of them asked me, “When are you going to become one of us?” Meaning, “When are you going to start drinking with us?” I immediately answered, “But I am one of you!” I'm friends with these people, and I don't have to drink to be accepted, to be a part of the group. I have my convictions; they have theirs. And we get along fine.

Now they respect me because I act according to what I think is right, and they don't ask me to drink anymore.

In spite of the fact that we're in a bar, we talk about intelligent things. We're not just talking non-sense. Sometimes we even talk about God. We share what each one of us thinks and believes about God. It's cool. :)

Herald Feature: Put together by Herald Editorial staff; Jonathan Daugherty, Resident Counselor, Principia College; Stephen Graham, The Christian Science Monitor; Maartje Hoogendijk, University of Leiden, The Netherlands. Designed by Eric J. Oyama