What ever happened to D.A.R.E. anyway?

I really don’t know how I am ever going to be a parent. I just don’t think I am capable of handling the stress. Every time I have to deal with situations in my own life that give me a little taste of what it will be like someday, it puts me into a mild state of anxiety and panic. It’s so hard to watch someone make the same mistakes over and over again.

The great state of California has been working diligently to legalize marijuana, and my little brother seems to think this has given him the right to carry it around with him wherever he pleases. Problem being, we live in the not-necessarily-so-great state of Washington, where cannabis is 100% illegal, especially on college campuses and for underage youth.

As if it’s not enough to have to worry about getting the dreaded “minor in possession” citation… I just can’t understand why my brother needs to pile on the additional risk. He was already cited last year for possession, and now he’s in the same pickle once again. And I just don’t know what to say… I have a feeling that, “Told ya so!” isn’t going to be the best advice in this situation, but I’m just at a loss.

I am a rule follower by nature. Not to say that I didn’t indulge in my fair share of underage drinking, and even other substance abuse, in college. But I was always consumed with paranoia and guilt, and I constantly avoided any unnecessary risks… Never carried alcohol or drugs on me, would not consider driving or getting in a car with someone who was under the influence, blah blah blah. I guess D.A.R.E. taught me well.

Maybe it’s the difference between males and females. Do men feel the need to take more risks? Is it the need, the thrill of the adrenaline rush of not getting caught? Or is it a rebellion against authority… does the notion that since pot supposedly “should” be legal in my brother’s eyes give him the self-imposed right to carry it?

Who knows. But now my baby brother is fighting to not get kicked out of his university, and that scares the crap out of me. It's so hard to be the much older sister, trying to give advice to someone who is living these things for the first time. I realize that we all need to make our own mistakes to learn and grow. and hindsight is alwasy 20/20, but it’s just hard to watch someone's actions when you already know what the outcome will be.

And those are just the feelings of an older sister. I can’t imagine how much more magnified they will be when I am dealing with the inevitable mistakes of my own children. I just don’t know if I will be able to take the pressure.

Which reminds me… did I take my birth control today?