2003 Abstinence Essay Contest 3rd Place   Jessica Teachey, 11th grader at Southern Wayne High School is recognized by Dr. Michael Gooden, Board of Health Chairperson and Evelyn Coley, Interim Health Director. Jessica will be a rising senior at Southern Wayne High School in the 2003-2004 school year She received a $25 gift certificate to Berkeley Mall.

"Why I Believe Teens Should Stay Abstinent"

The meaning of abstinence is voluntary forbearance especially from indulgence of an appetite or craving or from eating some foods. I know you are wondering why the definition chose to use abstinence in the context of food instead of sexual intercourse but it is really simple. During the publication of the Merriam-Webster Dictionary teenage pregnancies were not problems that were plaguing their youth. I chose to participate in this contest because I have very strong feelings when it comes to this subject.

There are way too many teenagers who are going out to indulge in certain forbidden "foods". I attend Southern Wayne High School and the number of young women who are walking around with-child is shocking, heartbreaking, and embarrassing. A woman's purity is the greatest gift that God has blessed her with. No one can give it back to you or trade you something that has the same value as it. Choosing to stay abstinent shows that you respect and appreciate such an endowment from God. Staying abstinent shows yours peers that you have self-control and you can make up your own mind. It also reveals that you do not have to follow the crowd and that you are focusing on your future one hundred percent. There is no way you can reach for the stars, complete your goals and take care of your baby while you are still a baby yourself.

Many females crave respect and honor from men, but there is no way one can ever gain that if you do not respect and honor yourself by remaining wholesome. Nevertheless, there is nothing wrong with having a baby or engaging in intercourse, but there is a time and place for everything. High school is the time where you need to be enjoying your life as a teenager and heading for college or the work field, which ever you choose. It is not the place to practice adult endeavors and get yourself in situations that others have to help you get out of. By remaining a virgin, I have no reason to fear a doctor's appointment or a pregnancy test. Every morning I wake up and reassure myself that it's going to be a wonderful day because I don't have a disease to treat or a child to take to daycare.

On another note, sex is something that God created for a man and woman, who are married, to share. Why have sex now and waste the excitement of a gift that you will eventually get? That is the same as opening your gifts on December 20th and opening them again on Christmas Day. Or better yet, if you are a teen who chooses to have sex with multiple partners, what if you opened your gift and allowed all the kids at your school to take it home and make use of it. By the time you got it back it would be dirty, destroyed, useless, and no longer wanted by anyone. Now that is exactly how I would feel if I chose to not continue being abstinent. In the long run my peers, God will reward and shower you with more blessings than you could ever think of if you just believe in his word and follow it. People our age love to go to the movies, basketball games, malls, and many other things. How would you feel if you had to cancel all those activities because you chose to have sex and now you have a child to take care of? We have enough pressures to deal with today and we should not want to cause ourselves more. Some people might think that choosing to not have sex means you are weak and spineless. But when you realize it, the only weak and spineless ones are those who give into temptation. It is important for us to remain abstinent so that we can secure our future. We are the future and there is no way we can make this a better world if we are all running around with babies. We have plenty of time for child bearing and raising. But right now, let's enjoy life, have fun, achieve our goals, and last but not least, REMAIN ABSTINENT.