Published: May 08, 2008 12:20 pm            

‘Draw the line’ is the message during teen abstinence rally

Male minds will complete the image when they see a woman wearing body-revealing clothes.

“If it’s not on the market, don’t advertise it. Don’t give Bubba anything to work with. The way your body looks without clothes is a secret, meant for only one person in the world.

“And what better gift can you give the man you marry than the priceless gift of your virginity?” Carol Sallee asked a group of seventh grade girls at the Southeast Expo Center during the Wanting Abstinence In Teens rally Wednesday.

“When you give it away, it’s gone forever,” Sallee said. “Give it to someone who will honor it as the precious gift that it is, not the person who says ‘Aren’t you cute?’ and ‘If you loved me ...’”

The right time, Sallee said, to relinquish one’s purity is “on your marriage night. No other time. Only on your marriage night. What better gift can you give the man you love than your virginity?”

Until then, “draw your line. Declare your line and defend your line,” Sallee told the rapt audience. “Don’t go any farther than the line you have drawn.”

The best way to keep to that, she said, is to date in groups and limit the amount of time spent alone with a boy.

She then talked about a girl who felt that things were moving too fast. The girl would go to her boyfriend’s house while no one else was at home and they would stretch out on his bed and watch TV.

“Well, duh,” Sallee said as the girls laughed. “What do you expect is going to happen? Go outside! Get out of the house. Be around other people. Protect that precious gift you will someday give to the man you marry.”

Sallee stressed several times that she was not asking the teens to swear off sex forever, “Just wait until you’re married. Then you can have all the sex you want,” she said.

Then she had four girls come up from the audience. The first one she called Birth. Standing about three feet away from her was the girl Sallee called Sex Drive. About three feet away from her was Marriage.

And way, way, way far away was Death. “Look at the long time you have between marriage and death to have sex,” Sallee said. “It’s worth waiting for. Pace your passion.”

Before winding up the session, Sallee told the girls not to fall for the line that “Oral sex isn’t really sex.”

“Oh yes, it is,” she said. “If it wasn’t, it wouldn’t have ‘sex’ at the end of it.”

And always remember, “Bubba may want something that is not his to have, something that belongs to your husband on your wedding night.

“But you can control your sexual purity. Only date people who respect your views. Date young men of character and respect.

“And don’t let a boy talk you into having sex when you’re not ready for it. Don’t give away that precious gift.

For more information about the WAIT Coalition, contact Camille Lalli, teen pregnancy prevention coordinator, at the Pittsburg County Health Department, 423-1267.

Contact Susan Brittingham at 421-2029 or e-mail sbrittingham@mcalesternews.com.

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.