Ode to Egg Salad

A student recently asked me why kids who use drugs feel the need to talk about it all the time. We chatted for a while and finally decided that they must think that it makes them look cool. Ah, the dreaded coolness factor! With all the prevention education and public service ads, it seems like there is still this perception that getting drunk and high is cool. Most kids (and adults for that matter) will deny that “being cool” is a driving force for them. But, I would like to share a little story from my own childhood that illustrates just how important it can be.

I love egg salad. I have always loved egg salad. However, when I was kid, there was a terrible price to be paid for this. Yep, whenever I would bring egg salad to school, kids would make fun of me and tell me that it smelled like farts! So, I would ask my mom to make egg salad. Then, when I got into the cafeteria, I would act all surprised and complain that there was egg salad in my lunch bag. I would never have admitted publicly that I liked that stinky sandwich. Well, I am in my 30’s now and am out of the egg salad closet.
What is the point of this touching little story, you ask? All kids are acutely aware of what their peers think of them—even if it’s something as silly as liking egg salad! As adults, I am sure that you can think back to your own egg salad story. We may laugh about it now, but we can all remember what it felt like to be excluded for being “different.” It is a lonely place to be!

So, in a teen culture that rewards drug use, what can be done? That is tough call since it is hard to change a whole culture! But again, I come back to dialogue. Talk to your kids about these issues. Try to develop an understanding of what it is like for them. Think back to your own struggles, so that you can have compassion for where they are. Perhaps even share your egg salad story with them!