Graduation season, like spring itself, is a blissfully anticipated passage, a time of cleansing and renewal. But anyone who reads or watches the locals news is aware of the grim association of proms and graduation parties with drinking and driving. The school photos of the victims, the piles of flowers, the dismay of the classmates — all are reminders of mortality at the precise moment when the future seems endless. They are also marks of parents’ and party hosts’ inability to keep car keys out of the hands of drunk or inexperienced drivers.
Understandably, parents want to show their faith in the maturity of new graduates. They want to believe it’s a simple matter of trust. But evidence suggests strongly that it’s not. Good kids without any tendency toward overdrinking might guzzle down a couple of cups full of mysterious-looking punches and find themselves buzzed and tired when it comes time to drive home. Dating pressures, the emotions of separating from classmates, the warm nostalgic feeling of togetherness — all can be excuses for drinking. And even slightly buzzed kids may lack the driving skills necessary to navigate unfamiliar roads in the dead of night, especially with classmates piled in the back seat and radios blasting.
It’s crucial for parents and communities to find alternative forms of transportation. Those garish white limos that make high school gyms look like the red carpet at Oscar night? Well worth the rental price. Responsible older brothers and sisters pitching in as late-night designated drivers? An invaluable graduation gift for a younger sibling. And there’s always Mom or Dad behind the wheel of the family minivan. With a little tolerance on both sides, it’s still an option. And if it’s the only one other than handing over the keys or trusting the driving skills of the neighbor’s kid, it’s a necessary choice. Those parents will never know that they’ve saved their child’s life. But in a community as large as Greater Boston, at least one or two will have done so, and all can take pride in a safe prom and graduation season.