Choices and Decisions...

Life is all about choices...Where to live, work, who to be friends with, how many kids to have, what stores to frequent, etc. Some choices are life changing and some are not important.

As we are growing up we are faced with some very big choices that could be life altering or even deadly. Under peer pressure we sometimes bend and give into these things. Drinking, smoking, drugs, drinking and driving, sex, stealing, etc. We think, "if we just do a good enough job parenting MY kids will make all the right choices" WRONG!!!

My parents were very strict growing up and I was overall a very good kid. Yes, I told an occasional lie, but I had good morals and respected my parents, but I still made a very bad choice that could have been life altering or ended my life quickly.

It was hot July night when I was 16. I went to my friend, Shane's  house and we decided to go to the Baltimore Inner Harbor which was only about 20 minutes from her house. (My parents would NEVER have let me go without an adult). Her parents were a lot less strict and were fine with it.We had no real plans of what we were going to do there we were just happy to be independent.
We arrived around 9 and had a bite to eat at one of the restaurants there. After we walked around the harbor which was full of people on their boats. As we passed one large speed boat, two grown men asked us if we wanted to take a ride on their boat. Like complete idiots, we were flattered and we jumped on board. They asked if we wanted to drive the boat and I jumped right behind the wheel as he sat behind me to help steer. Never for one minute did it cross my mind that this fun exciting ride may end in disaster! DUH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Luckily for us we were returned safely back to the harbor about 10 minutes later. I think about this trip as being the trip we had angels on our shoulders. I mean, really, the stupidity of  that trip never ceases to amaze me.

We have had our share of bad choices among our six kids and some have been life changing and future altering! It seems with some people, especially kids, all the talking in the world won't change things. Remember they think that are exempt from THOSE bad things happening to them.

"If I only had two drinks and i'm just driving 1/4 of a mile, who cares, right!" WRONG,,,,Hello Mr. Policeman as someone does a rolling stop at a stop sign.

"I can use my friends ID to get into a bar at college, they never check them anyway" Oh, YES they do, and have the police waiting for them if they try!

"I don't really have to do the interviews for the project required for high school graduation. I will make them up and just use peoples names, one being a teacher at school." HELLO dummy, they will check with the teacher and when he doesn't recall you ever interviewing him you will be caught! You were very very Lucky they liked you at that high school or you would not have passed 10th grade! (That was a very hairy situation and NOT a call I wanted to get at work!)

These are just a few choices that were made by my perfect children and believe me we have many more that I can't and won't mention. Never blame yourself for your kids poor choices. I honestly couldn't tell you how many times we have drilled certain things into our kids heads just to be slapped by the reality that they did the exact things we were preaching about for YEARS.

Like I said, Life is full of choices and hopefully we will make the right ones, but if not, hopefully we will learn from the wrong ones.