It’s no secret that there are countless people on campus who drink. It’s also no secret that there are people who are drinking while they are still underage. There have even been public announcements and regulations about underage drinking. Yet there are so many people who continue to drink while underage.

I remember last year, my freshman year, at Kistler. There was a certain week when I noticed a giant piece of colored paper on a wall talking about a no-drinking challenge where people would sign their name down below signifying that they would spend a certain amount of time (could’ve been the weekend) not drinking. 

I noticed two things that both pointed to the same main point. First of all, there were a number of people who signed this sheet – which indicates to me that there’s that many people who are basically admitting they drink while underage. 

Second, within the challenge description, the writer acknowledged how many people knowingly drink while underage. These two things struck me with the reality that so many people do drink even though they’re under 21.

Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to preach here. Who am I to say that I’m a better person just because I don’t drink? Just like every person (or at least every person who is willing to admit they’re not perfect), I have my own set of setbacks that daily cause me grief and frustration. However, as a person who never got into drinking and is watching this particular scenario from the sidelines, I just want to at least tell you how I view the world of underage drinking.

You know how they tell you to consider the consequences of your actions? Even if someone continues to drink due to a lack of self-control, but begins to at least consider these things, what a different world! As an introspective person, whenever my mind begins wandering while driving and I find myself veering into the next lane, my first thought is, “How likely would it have been for me to crash? How likely would it have been for a fatal accident to happen right then?” It’s a humbling thought.

As I already said, I’m not preaching here. As a Grand Valley student, I have no authority to tell people not to drink while underage and expect them to submit to my measly authority, especially since people could probably say the same thing about some of my problems in life. I’m just trying to present the situation in a new way. 

I know this is something that has been said about numerous topics like this one, but…is it really worth it? If nothing else happens, I hope I can at least spark this interest in some readers, but I find it to be very awakening. As disturbing as it is, have you ever thought about how likely it is for your life to end suddenly because of some careless error on your part? Be mindful, be cautious, be careful.

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