DIFFERENT DRUG PROBLEM

The following letter has appeared on the Internet, and was viewed by many readers. Think it very appropriate to share.

The other day, someone at the store in our town read that a Methamphetamine lab had been found in an old farmhouse in the adjoining county and he asked me a rhetorical question. "Why didn't we have a drug problem when you and I were growing up?"

I replied I had a drug problem when I was young: I was drug to church on Sunday morning. I was drug to church for weddings and funerals. I was drug to family reunions and community socials no matter the weather.

I was drug by my ears when I was disrespectful to adults. I was also drug to the woodshed when I disobeyed my parents, told a lie, brought home a bad report card, did not speak with respect, spoke ill of a teacher, or the preacher, or anyone else, or if I didn't put forth my best effort in everything that was asked of me.

I was drug to the kitchen sink to have my mouth washed out with soap if I uttered a profanity. I was drug out to pull weeds in mom's and grandma's garden and flower beds and cockle burs out of dad's fields. I was drug to the cotton fields in Texas to pick cotton, so I could earn a little spending money. I was drug to the homes of family, friends and neighbors to help some poor soul who had no one else to mow the yard, repair the clothesline, or chop some firewood, and, if my mother had ever known I took a single dime as a tip for this kindness, she would have drug me to the woodshed.

Those drugs are still in my veins and they affect my behavior in everything I do, say, or think. They are stronger than cocaine, crack, or heroin; and if today's children had this kind of drug problem, America would be a better place.

God bless the parents who drugged us !!!

P.S. This is what I was taught as a child, and I really thought I had it rough. Every day I thank my parents for the lessons they taught me. Their love and encouragement is what has gotten me some very tough times. I find the older I get, just how smart my parents were. Love you Dad and Mom, and Thank You for drugging me.