High school is normally the time when adolescents begin to delve into the world of alcohol – to discover their limits and develop habits and this experimentation continues into college. This is the norm and not a bad thing, but there are of course some exceptions. In high school, I never went to a single party, was never invited to one, and barely heard about it. It was something none of my close friends participated in and the thought of drinking never really crossed my mind. I was so busy with schoolwork, work, and the cross country team that I didn't have a lot of free time, and when I did, I wanted to relax and hang out with my friends. My parents raised me in the faith of the Catholic Church and this journey gave me a solid moral foundation. I always laugh and have fun doing the simplest things, so it was easy for me to find activities to participate in besides drinking. It wasn't until the summer after high school graduation that I started to feel peer pressure to drink and the fact that I was still sober started to make me feel a little isolated. At the start of high school, none of my close friends had ever drank or drank alcohol. were interested in it, but as the years went by, more and more of them began to try alcohol. Drinking is a personal choice and I had no problem experimenting with it, but towards the end of my senior year some of my friends started trying to convince me to try it myself. Everyone knew I was conservative when it came to this sort of thing and people joked that I went crazy once I got to college and was no longer governed by the strict rules of my parents. Unbeknownst to them, this kind of statement repeated over and over again, even though I always denied it, began to arouse my curiosity. However, I could...... middle of paper...... sound. So I always try to make everyone feel included, even though I'm still one of the calmest people in the world. Finally, my parents taught me to work hard to get the rewards I get. This has always been a major factor in my desire to succeed in my studies and in sports. I know that if I work hard enough, I can succeed and if I don't get the results I want, it's no one's fault but my own. As for drinking, I know my parents would have been disappointed if I had made the decision to start drinking in high school. When I take into account all the wonderful lessons they taught me and all the love they gave me, it never made sense to upset them unnecessarily. As cliché as it may sound, I honestly know that these morals have guided me throughout my life and helped me make the best decisions possible..