He’s falling into the water in this picture. It’s kind of like how tobacco can drag you in a cycle, in some way. The artist describes it as her way to handle depression and stuff like that. That she feels like no matter how hard she tries, it’s like every time she goes to get back out, it’s just another wave of water crashing onto her. I know that’s how tobacco can feel as well.

It’s just kind of messed up, it’s distorted and I just think that’s an accurate description of how someone who’s dealing with addiction could feel. If I had to pick, draw or envision it, I would see it exactly like that, just kind of messy. Chaotic. You’re jumping into the water and going somewhere that you don’t know. You’re sinking. I feel like once you’re in this position, you’re sinking. You don’t know where you’re going, you don’t know how it’s going to end. You don’t know anything.

For my biology class at our university, we studied nematodes, which are just a type of worm that scientists study for health effects on humans. I chose this photo because one thing is, sometimes tobacco takes away your self-esteem, makes you feel really small like this worm. You need to use a microscope to see these worms. Like 40x zoom.

You need to be really, really close to see them and that’s how people feel, like they need to be super close to be seen. But really, they’re part of a huge picture because these worms help so much with medicine. These tiny things have a big impact. It’s the same for people. They feel small when they use tobacco products, and they don’t see how big of an importance they have. Most of the time, the tobacco products are parasitic too. They’re eating you, if you want to be dark about it.

I took this picture when I was sitting alone. Being someone that talks about anti-tobacco I feel like people would stop, but they just stopped listening after a while and they stopped caring. In this photo everyone else in the background is blurred out to signify that my peers are just not listening anymore and they’re seeming to care less and less as they grow older or as time goes on. We lose friends because of vaping. Those who use nicotine shut others out, they are more moody, and then they end up alone or dealing with depression.

It works the other way too, for us who are advocating for change. Ever since my first year here, everybody used to be like, “Oh, Hey!” But now, it’s like they push me to the side because I’ve just been that person that talks about it and hammers it into their brains. But the people that actually use tobacco products are like, “Well, I don’t want to listen to you. I don’t think you’re right.” So that’s caused me to lose many friends and be on the outside of it, just sitting alone at lunch and during group activities. I’m just a person watching in the background. So, it’s really like that.

When a balloon starts out, it’s full of air, it has a lot of potential. It could brighten up a room at a party or another event but as soon as it gets pricked by something or if somebody accidentally bumps it into the wall, it pops. Then it has lost its potential, it’s lost its air, it’s lost what made it. When a balloon is popped, it can never be blown back up. You can never repair that hole. The same thing is with your lungs, the health effects, and the rest of your body. I can compare this popped balloon to someone I know who started vaping. They became really addicted to the point where it was very obvious when he was not vaping or hadn’t had a vape in a long time. To the point where even his friends slowly started not wanting to be friends with him because it became so overwhelming for other people. There’s no other balloons around the popped balloon because it just deters everyone else.

What I’ve noticed from people I know who have started vaping is that when they’re not vaping or haven’t vaped in a while, their main focus starts becoming “I need nicotine, I need to vape in order to continue functioning”. And that completely takes focus off of everything else including schoolwork, going out with friends, and just overall happiness. All of their attention and energy is just towards getting nicotine in their system. Mental health is a big factor in youth addiction. We know a lot of high schoolers really rely on vapes and smoking/tobacco products to just maybe get through the day. This person popped because of all the stress and anxiety that built up over time because of their tobacco use. This is where tobacco gets in a way to achieving our and our peers’ dreams because balloons are meant to be released and fly together. But a number of “balloons” are held down by addiction and don’t fly with others.

When I look at this picture, with all the buildings and everything, I just always see so much opportunity and so much will and power in that. At the same time, I felt small the moment I took the picture. When you’re in that setting, you just feel so tiny. This is how I feel when our voices aren’t heard. You’re small either way, whether you are on top of the building or at its bottom. At the bottom, you can just be content with that or you can climb to the top and be able to witness all the potential that’s out there. If I were to meet with decision-makers, I would want them to know that addiction would have greatly hindered me from going on top, being empowered, and made me stay at the bottom. I want adults to see that the fight is among us. It’s up to the youth to go back and be leaders in our communities and to be an example. I would ask for policy to reflect that to help us in our fight. Yes, each of us is just one person. We can only do so much by fighting it in our communities. When I went up and testified in front of the Capitol, there’s only so much my words could do.

I want to tell them that we need their help so that everything else in our lives can be possible, all the other accomplishments can be possible if we’re helped along in the process by their decisions to get to the top of our goals. I think sometimes since we’re younger, we’re invalidated as youth in the eyes of adults as if we’re not looking at the same kind of goals and stuff as they are. I just remember looking at this and being so powerful and so uplifted because I just see so much opportunity and so many things to explore. That’s something that I’m still interested in and willing to put in work to pursue as part of the youth as well.