The title of this post ‘responsible enjoyment’ might seem like a contradiction in terms for many young people. If you are really enjoying yourself and going wild then how can you be responsible? Too many times people say ‘I drank too much. I didn’t know what I was doing.’ It might sound plausible to their peers but such an argument doesn’t hold sway in a court of law.
I recently returned from a holiday in Thailand. The Thais pride themselves on their independence. Thailand never became a British colony, nor was it conquered by the Japanese in World War II. I’m not so old as not to enjoy a party. I stayed up several nights in Bangkok, Koh Samui and Koh Phangan enjoying the music, and yes, having a few drinks. There is a sense of freedom in Thailand. The locals don’t care much for laws about closing bars at 1am or stopping smoking. They also don’t want to get fined by the police; so they tread a fine line.
Many of the young people I saw at the Full Moon Party in Koh Phangan were also treading a fine line it seemed to me. The party has a heavy and noticeable police presence. The police are not there to protect people but rather to catch foreigners taking drugs. I spoke to a few Thai friends I have in Koh Phangan about this and they all said the same thing. Foreigners who are caught taking drugs at the party face a heavy fine and possible jail time. That was enough to put me off the idea of tasting the ‘special shakes’ or the other things that were on sale.
Young people have to set themselves rules before they lose sobriety. If they have firmly decided then they will say ‘no’ even when the booze has put them beyond rational decisions. Knowing the consequences and possible penalties of being caught taking drugs at the Full Moon Party seems to be a good case in point. Just because other people seem to be doing it doesn’t mean it is OK. It just means that those people are taking extreme risks, you should say ‘no’ and pray they wake up in the morning in their bungalow and not in a cell.
Have a good time, but set up your rules at the start of the night. That little voice of reason will come to your aid later on even in the midst of an alcoholic haze. If it doesn’t then you should consider limiting how many drinks you have a night. Responsibly enjoying yourself is still enjoying yourself. In the morning when you hear about the troubles others have had, you will be grateful for your own sensibleness.
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