Cheers!

Every nine weeks I essentially clear my calendar because I am on call to respond to new cases of child abuse and neglect. I work with two monitors and I generally have my email in view at all times, but on these weeks I catch myself checking for the email notification every morning around nine. The state's child welfare staff sends me a the names, ages, and a brief summary of the situation that caused them to take the child into their custody. While some weeks are busy and some weeks are slow, I cannot remember any week when substance abuse was not a reason that a family was brought before the juvenile court.

This week was no exception. Every single one of the situations that led to juvenile court involvement came from substance abuse. Some children had been born with drugs in their system. Other children required care because their moms and dads were incarcerated. Two families suffered physical abuse because of the father's choices while intoxicated. The one factor they had in common was parents who chose to consume mind-altering substances without understanding, or caring, about the consequences on those around them.

These families represent a small portion of our population. The excessive consumption of alcohol and even the use of illicit substances is often tolerated. If any government actually took custody of every child who lived in a circumstance where his or her parents used illegal drugs, our foster care system would be even bigger than the overcrowded prison population. In my day to day work I encounter situations where these children suffer real physical harm and their very safety is at risk because of their parents' substance abuse. It's a phenomenon that I will never fully understand.

Because I abstain from alcohol my friends will hypothesize what I might be like if I were to drink. Some think I would be an even more friendly fellow who would laugh and joke and just goof around. A surprisingly large group seems to think that I would be a sad drunk, if I were to get to that point. I feel fortunate that almost nobody opines that I would be a mean drunk. Since I have no intentions to begin drinking at any point, this question will likely remain unanswered. The choice to abstain does not just come from the examples I see at work, but stems from a self-evaluation that leads me to believe that if I did drink or did try drugs, I might not know when to stop.

I have periodically noticed addictive tendencies in my own behaviors, but fortunately they have not included behaviors that placed my children at risk. As a self-identified teetotaler I offer the following suggestion as a guide to responsible alcohol consumption. In full disclosure, the basis is a popular Spanish idiomatic expression. Remember, the first glass can satisfy thirst, the second makes for good company, the  third glass can make you happy, but the fourth brings on stupidity.