Just like any high school student, I enjoyed going to parties on the weekends. By doing this I made poor decisions that changed my life. While at a party, I thought by showing people that I can drink a large amount of liquor would make me seem like I was cool. Well, I was completely wrong and made a decision that still affects me to this day and probably will for the rest of my life.

One night, my girlfriend and I decided to attend a party in a neighboring town that multiple people from many different schools were attending. Before we arrived, I did not have any alcoholic beverages until one of my friends offered me a bottle of liquor they no longer wanted. I decided to take it willingly not knowing that this decision would change my life forever. When we arrived at the party, I started drinking at an abnormal rate. Within forty-five minutes of the party, I had finished the whole bottle of liquor, but did not feel the effects of the alcohol yet because of how fast I finished it. Minutes later, I was standing in a group with Carbondale kids and a couple of my friends from Lakeland. I was acting no different than usual and was just enjoying the party. Without notice to anyone, I took a running start at the fire and attempted to leap across. The fire pit was too big for me to jump right over so I planted my foot in the middle and tried to push off. While jumping, I felt like I was at the 2016 Olympics doing the triple jump while millions watched. When I planted my foot, it got stuck in a pallet and my leg was in the middle of a blazing fire pit. Immediately, I started yanking my foot and in less than five seconds I managed to rip my foot out. At first I thought I was fine until my friends came rushing over screaming “you’re on fire” and started patting me down. The pain was unbearable, and the skin on my leg was dripping as if it were wax dripping from the side of a candle. A couple of my buddies helped carry me to my girlfriend’s car and we rushed to my house.

When I arrived at my house, my mother and father looked at my legs, and their jaws dropped faster than you could say tooth. Immediately they knew we had to go to the ER. The ride to the ER was the longest and most painful ride of my life. When we finally arrived at the ER I was panicking and having very scary thoughts. I was thinking to myself “What if I lose my leg? What if I cannot play football anymore?”. I was scared beyond death and did not know what the outcome would be. My mother comforted me by letting me know that everything is going to be alright and telling me she loved me. She hugged me and it felt like a blanket of love wrapped me in a tight grip. After waiting a while, I was seen by a doctor and she cleaned my burns and gave me something to alleviate the pain. I was told that if my burns were any worse on my right leg I could have lost it. This was a very scary thought for me and I knew that the decision I made to chug a hole bottle of liquor was absolutely ridiculous. I found out that my recovery could take anywhere from four to six weeks and I was totally destroyed because my cross fit workouts had to be ended for a short period of time. I was released from the hospital and went home for the night and had to make an appointment to see my family doctor. For a week after I got the burns, I had to stay in my house 24/7 and had to have my legs elevated all day. If I did not properly take care of them this could have also caused me to lose them. The pain throughout the night it happened and the week after caused me to change my whole outlook on life and made me a stronger person.

Although I made a terrible decision that night, it taught me so much that would change me for the rest of my life. Most people would be very angry or upset and wish that it never happened. On the other hand, I am very happy that this happened because it has made me so much smarter. I have been offered alcohol many times after the incident and said no every time, even though my friends think I am boring. I feel as though if I did not stop I would make many more stupid decisions. The next dumb decision could have been my life on the line.  Now, every time I do something I think of all the possible out comes first. Then, after I know the outcomes I ask myself if any of them put me or anybody else in danger. Just by doing this I have noticed that I have grown closer with my family, friends, and live a much safer life. I have also learned from this to not leave your own territory, as in your home town if you are going out to party. There are not as many people that care for you there and will slow you down if they know you are getting out of hand. So, now I stay in Carbondale, Pennsylvania for weekend fun and stay near my closest friends. After the incident I also suffered from a little bit of PTSD. I stayed up nights after nights in fear that if I fell backwards in the fire I could be dead. I imagined myself looking like a log that was charred on the outside This is what changed me the most because mental pain is worse than any type of physical pain. It drains you of everything and changes your entire attitude. I do not want to suffer through this type of pain ever again. So, I knew it was time to change my ways and become the most I can be.

As you can see, alcohol can cause people to make poor decisions. Sometimes, these poor decisions are the things that shape people to be the best they can be in life. If we did not make stupid choices sometimes how would we learn right from wrong? We would not, and the world would be a very dangerous place. Always think of the outcomes before doing something that can cause serious pain.