Politics
In a recent visit to a local elementary school, I was asked some tough questions about being a reporter. Not only did they ask me general questions about what my life is like, but they forced me to think about why I choose to be a journalist.
I tell people that I’m not a reporter. I’m a writer. I’m not out to burn anyone or tackle an expose on some big scandal.
We live in Small Town USA, so scandal is part of everyday life. We just overlook it because it’s always been there and always will be. What matters in small town politics is whether or not you are part of the “Good ol’ boy” club or not.
But the students and I didn’t talk about that. We didn’t talk politics at all. I was glad.
They asked questions about everything else. I spent the better part of last week trying to figure out if the answers I gave them were real or just what I had perceived them to be with the spot light on me.
Almost all the questions they asked had a positive spin. Why did I like being a reporter? Or what did I like most about my job? What is my favorite story?
My favorite story is a story I wrote about Brent Jeffries. He is a Marine from Mount Vernon, Indiana, and was among the first to enter the city of Baghdad. They thought that was cool. But that was an easy question.
After some time, I had decided that the answers I gave the students were genuine. I also decided life was much easier on my side of the table. But there was one question that continued to plague me.
One little girl asked me what kind of stories I like to write the least. That one was the toughest.
I remember thinking before I answered her…”Is it the accidents? The people struggling with diseases? The murders or other crimes? Or Is it the meetings?”
Then it hit me. “I don’t like writing about the people that make or do drugs.”
As if that wasn’t hard enough to try to explain, let’s follow it up with “why?”
Okay, how can I put this so that they’ll understand?
“Well, I don’t like to write about that because I think people are capable of doing more than drugs.”
They looked at me funny. So I felt the need to explain a bit further. I think that each person has a purpose for being here. And I don’t think that it’s to do drugs.
They just let that one go, as did I for the moment. But I couldn’t help but think about it all weekend.
I firmly believe that most people are good, or at least they want to be. I don’t know if people start doing drugs because of circumstances in their life, because they grew up with drugs in their homes, because their friends convinced them to try meth or pot or whatever the drug or because they were curious.
In most cases, I think a person finds a group that will accept him or her. That person doesn’t want to lose the feeling of belonging, so they begin to take part in whatever the group is doing. Before long, that person is hooked.
I have a friend (who’s really more like family) who recently shared a little bit of a life inside a ring of friends. Having grown up with a family that is strongly rooted in God, she struggled with her decisions.
After much prayer from her family and friends, she realized that she was capable of much more than drugs. She’s proof that promises that God makes really do come to fruition.
She blames herself for others that got hooked on drugs. But what she doesn’t realize is that we all make choices every day.
As adults, teens and even young children these days, we are forced to make tough choices. We can’t pass on the blame for those decisions. We have to accept the consequences.
One of the gray areas of life isn’t always the choice we make, but how do we handle the consequences of those choices. A big part of who we are is how we handle adversity.
I’m proud of this friend because, she made a choice. She may not have made the choice that I would have made or even that you would have made. But she has turned that around and wants to help other people not to make the same choices.
I pray that she keeps walking the path she’s on. I know it may become hard at times, but I also know that she had the strength to make the right decision when it counted. I have faith that when faced with tough choices in the future, she’ll do the right thing.
The thing about this young lady is that she had many people praying for her. She knows that. And I’m sure she’d acknowledge that it’s those prayers that helped her get to where she is today.
I’m sure you could think on someone who has had a similar testimony, but how do you view that person today?
Think of them as a success. Someday that person may reach his or her potential.
I leave you with this thought. Drugs are a serious problem in many counties across the country. Maybe, if we spend less time judging these people, and more time praying for them, maybe, we can help make a difference in the lives of people that don’t have anyone pulling for them.
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