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A few months away from entering high school 40 years ago, I was presented with an opportunity to do drugs. 

I was playing summer baseball at Bowers Park in Tuscaloosa when some of my teammates, a year older, had marijuana, heroin and crack cocaine in their bags alongside gloves.

“C’mon man, this stuff is cool,” a teammate said. 

I shook my head and said, “No thanks, I’m cool.”

Several of my teammates called me a “wuss” and a “coward” for not joining in on getting high with them outside the dugout.

I was not taking a moral stance or being righteous. I was not interested in doing drugs, I never saw it as a fun thing to do. The threat of getting severely disciplined at home if I got caught doing drugs did not factor into my decision. 

In 1984, I was a big fan of First Lady Nancy Reagan’s “Just Say No” campaign. Holt High School, my alma mater, was one of several schools nationwide with school-run anti-drug programs. I put politics aside and supported Reagan’s program. 

A few years later, teenage actor Kirk Cameron of the hit TV series, “Growing Pains,” did a commercial encouraging kids not to do drugs. Cameron’s announcement came after a 1987 episode where his character, Mike Seaver, was tempted to do drugs. Of course, Seaver turned them down. 

I was a fan of “Growing Pains” and became a bigger fan after watching the episode and Cameron’s commercial. 

I’ve seen drugs ruin many lives, both family and friends. A cousin had an Alabama State Highway Department job waiting for him after high school graduation 43 years ago. He got the job but only lasted 12 years because of drugs. 

Two close friends of mine got addicted to drugs and both eventually died. 

I am so grateful not to have done drugs. That’s why I appreciate the efforts of Jerria Martin of Drug Free Communities of Dallas County. We have the same stance on anti-drugs.

James Jones is the managing editor of The Selma Times-Journal. He can be reached at james.jones@selmatimesjournal.com.