Rebel of a Different Kind

I guess I was not the typical teenager in that while my mother and stepfather were very authoritarian and there was abuse in the house mixed with a fundamentalistic approach to Christianity that seemed more than not to leave us questioning whether God really did love us, I still did not have the urge to rebell. There were moments in college when my classmates, obviously experienced drinkers started talking about drinks and crazy names of the beverages and I could not believe them and said, "well you'll never catch me ordering one of those; it's like a personal invitation to the bartender.....no way!" I thought is was funny, yet it was foreign and I still wasn't interested in drinking for the sake of getting drunk. Fast forward 10 years - give or take - and I've gotten tipsy within the safe boundaries of my home and great company and food and it is great fun. I remember a distinctive evening, one New Years Eve, spent with our dear friends Kat and Drew and I actually walked into the side of the wall after 4 glasses of wine; it was pretty funny and I can still see Kat's beautiful face, with her full smile, laughing. Now that I'm 34, I have to say that after two glasses of wine I find myself with a huge headache the next morning lasting almost the entire day; is this a hangover?! I honestly have no idea, but I'm guessing it is and how pathetic is that?! I recal my friend Kat telling me earlier this year that she thinks she is allergic to red wine now because it gives her a headache......ah well. More than anything, I am glad that I have had the experiences I've had. I think I've been spared a lot of foolish moments had I rebelled from my parents in ways that would have just put me in danger. My pathway has lead me to find a different method of shedding the misguided and hurtful rearing I experienced as a child through good therapy, a connection to God that is unexplainable and gracious beyond belief, and relationships that I wouldn't trade for all the world. All that being said, I am intruiged by how others fared growing up, what they were dealt and the choices they made as a result, and where they are now. I don't look at myself as someone who is better because I wasn't getting drunk in highschool; everyone is unique and each person's life is a story waiting to be told. This weekend as we go to the beach, we'll get to see new friends in person and I am so excited and I'm going to soak it all in ...............along with some Tequilla =-)