I first moved states away from my hometown approximately 5 years ago, completely alone. The reason, well for one I had such ambition and drive to become a photographer for a very well known company and two, I had met someone that I only dated for two weeks after moving here.

About a month living in this beautiful new, warm environment I met what would become the flame to my fire, my life long heartthrob. Most would ridicule and judge me for making such an uneducated and then go on and speculate whatever pretentious thoughts they may have. Before you become the justice of peace and throw me to the side like a dysfunctional waste of society, I want you to just listen without judging and have some understanding as to what that night I smoked what I thought and might still think is relatively harmless, much less than that drink you had last night. Yes, that glass of wine with dinner that you barely thought twice about.

Put yourself in my shoes, an ambitious and excited 18-year-old straight out of high school, moving from rainy Seattle to sunny southern California, you have someone to hang out with for two weeks, but then your all alone, no one around. You open your phone to a social network where others are looking for people to hang out with and you someone you have met once or twice from back home, they message you. Okay, stop right there before I continue to think about this, immediately putting yourself in that situation would you or would you not regardless of what comes next go spend time with them, knowing this is a person you are somewhat familiar with in an area where everyone is unknown. If I asked most of you the answer would be “Of course!”

So just like any young person would do in my situation I did, and that night changed me forever. And this may shock you but I wish no ill ends for this familiar, in fact in some ways I would like to acknowledge that this person opened my mind, and eyes and turned me towards a path of less ignorance and instead a path of understanding and maybe not just relating to narcotics but, instead of spitting on anyone whom I felt better than, before subjecting myself to this now I can relate and come to a like-minded or at least courteous presence to them.

I’m not going to assume anything about you, the reader but, I will assume the probability of more than 3 out of 5 of you have not ingested a substance such as the one I was tricked into doing. I realize this article kind of is a ramble or soapbox but, I just want people and humanity, in general, to be more empathetic towards those in society we deem as taboo just as they do in India with untouchables, in America we are doing the same thing. THINK

Henk H.