by Harry White, Gold Coast, Australia
My kind of Friday night is one that Saturday will thank me for.
There is a saying that, “The best nights are the ones that you don’t remember”. Well I have had one of those nights before, and if I didn’t remember it, my body certainly made sure that I did with the constant vomiting, headaches, stomach cramps and un-easiness.
Are those big party nights really worth it?
I mean, alcohol is expensive and it makes you do things that you will regret doing, like:
– taking drugs, trying cigarettes,
– lowering your standards and ‘hooking up’ with complete strangers, and
– engaging in behaviours and doing things which are dangerous to yourself and others.
It takes you away from your-self, it gives you a hangover, dulls your senses, kills brain cells and causes undeniable damage to your heart and liver.
As a seventeen year-old young man there is an enormous pressure to go to parties, get wasted and ‘have a good time’ with your mates. I felt this pressure from my school peers and let myself succumb to it. I guess I attended the party to be seen as ‘cool’ and to be accepted by my peer group. I had no interest in drinking alcohol so I played the game of “I’m the designated driver”, but never expressed my true feelings of “No, I don’t want to drink alcohol” from fear of not being accepted. This fear of rejection would get me every time.
More recently I have felt this pressure from friends who ask me if I “want to go out”, meaning go out to pubs or nightclubs and get ‘plastered’. As a young musician, I have played in many pubs and clubs and have experienced first hand what this ‘getting plastered’ may be like; I know I would not like it at all. From behind the drum set I have observed many troublesome things, which have confirmed my feeling that I absolutely do not EVER want to dull and numb myself so much. The thought of being in such a state brings horror to my body and it almost makes me sick.
Now that I have realised that it IS okay and should be considered the ’norm’ to be self-loving and express your true feelings, I have been shining within myself and allowing that shine to emanate outwardly. It is so rewarding to honour your body and your feelings and let them guide the way you live and the choices that you make.
So what IS my kind of Friday night?
My kind of Friday night is one where I can cook dinner with my family and be in their company.
My kind of Friday night is one where I can wind-down with a cup of chamomile tea and be in bed by nine.
One where I can joke around with my sister.
One where I can have a laugh with my Dad about our day.
One where I can give my Mum a foot massage after a big day at work.
Where I can draw some pictures or write about my day.
In my kind of Friday night I can dance joyfully to music without being intoxicated.
My kind of Friday night is one that my body loves me for, because I choose to love it.