On the front page of the Franklin section April 10, underage drinking was in bold print. Is that something new? Every couple of years, when a new survey comes out, everyone jumps on the bandwagon.

It is good to let young people know the dangers of alcohol, but it seems education is all they receive. They need to be shown what can happen.

Don’t just give lectures, tell the whole story. Alcoholism is a disease, not a drug that you grow dependent upon or addicted to. It tends to run in families. It kills. I am not just talking drinking and driving. I was 15 and drank a pint of whiskey; if someone hadn’t got me to the hospital, I would have died. I started drinking at age 6, for none of the reasons mentioned in the article.

So what can people do?

Talk to children, don’t lecture them. Don’t sugarcoat it. The true facts are best. They know more than older people think. Maybe ask them what activities they would like in their town; but it is not just the school’s responsibility to provide those activities. They told us here in New Vineyard a couple of years ago, but nobody paid attention.

Most of all, people need to please listen to the children, and talk the truth.

If I had someone to listen back in grammar school, who knows what might have happened.

Karen Raymond, New Vineyard