By Albert Lea Tribune

Question 2 was: If you have not participated in drinking alcohol beverages, what influences have you faced and, if so, why have you resisted?

I am proud to say that I haven&8217;t used any alcoholic beverages. I don&8217;t believe it&8217;s worth the risk. I&8217;d rather worry about doing well in school and where I am going in the future. That&8217;s what is important.

I have never participated in drinking, well except for when I was younger and my parents would give me a sip of their winecooler. None of my close friends drink so I don&8217;t have the peer pressure telling me to do it. Yes there are the times when people I don&8217;t even know or hardly know ask me but it is just easier to say no. My parents hardly drink, so the little alcohol that we do have, I can get at without a problem but I have been told by many different people like my parents, teachers and even pastors not to drink. It is just the choice I make to not drink.

I have not participated in drinking, I have no interest to. What influenced me not to drink was growing up around it. Both my parents drank and it wasn&8217;t fun when you got them angry. My childhood was full of negatives and I want a real future, I want a good chance at life. Some people say if your parents do it, their children will follow. Well the train stops here.

I have not participated in drinking. I am very happy for that. The pressure the media puts on teens is very difficult to ignore sometimes. From movies to music alcohol I mentioned a lot. It is tough but the reason why I resist is cause I am aware of the consequences and know that underage drinking is bad. I am happy to not be drinking and plan to not be drinking till I am of age.

No, I&8217;ve never participated in drinking alcoholic beverages. But I have been to places where there was drinking. I don&8217;t think that it&8217;s that big of a deal if people drink around me, but I know drinking isn&8217;t for me. I&8217;m in sports and I don&8217;t want to ruin that just for one fun night.

I have never participated in drinking alcoholic beverages. I have a great group of friends that would never pressure me into drinking, let alone drink themselves. I know the consequences of underage drinking and I don&8217;t think it&8217;s worth taking the risk. Sports are a major reason I resist alcohol. I am a 3 sport athlete and sitting out a season isn&8217;t worth having a pointless drink.

I don&8217;t drink alcohol. Honestly, I never plan to. I&8217;ve seen firsthand the ways it can crush someone&8217;s potential because if all the consequences of drinking, especially underage. Not only is it against the law, which makes it a huge risk of punishment if discovered, but I first don&8217;t think it&8217;s worth it.

Having only a small handfull of friends, I have never been peer pressured into alcohol use. The only influences of alcohol that I have been exposed to is the media and of course my parents and in public. I personally feel gifted to not be popular as I think the larger group of friends that you have, less of them care about you and more of them will pressure you into things like drinking.

I chose not to drink alcohol because I&8217;ve got too much going for me. I know that one drink isn&8217;t going to mess up your life forever, but sometimes one drink leads to many more drinks and by the time you know it, it&8217;s 3:32 a.m. and you have class in four hours. So the reason why I chose to stay sober is simple &8212; I have goals in life and I&8217;m not about to screw them up for just one night on the town.

I have chose not to participate in drinking alcohol. There is far too much to loose &8212; my athletics, the respect of elders and peers, and knowing that I gave into peer pressure. My parents have also told me the effects alcohol can have and told me to stay away. My friends and I all have a ton of fun without using alcohol. There are too many teens killed every year either by a drunk driver, or because they themselves were driving drunk. I choose to exclude myself from that group by staying away from drinking alcohol. My morals, parents, and friends influence and back my decision to do so.

I have not drank alcoholic beverages. I was brought up being taught that drinking is bad and stupid. People say that peer pressure influences people to drink, but for me it&8217;s almost the opposite. My main group of friends doesn&8217;t drink and they would be mad if I did. Drinking is just not a good idea, it makes you to things that you regret and things that make you look bad.

Another reason for not drinking is the consequences of getting caught. I would lose all of my parents trust. I would have to sit out of sports for half the season. Also, nobody wants to be the &8220;kid at school who got an illegal.&8221;

For me, drinking alcoholic beverages is not a big deal. I would much rather drink a pop or milk. I have seen the consequences of drinking underage and don&8217;t want to wreck my future for one drink.

I believe there is a time and place to drink and with trying to focus on school work high school isn&8217;t one of them.

Look for more of these answers in future editions.