Many young people from all around the world love to tell other their
life story.
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| I STOPPED GOING TO MASS Three years ago I stopped going to Sunday Mass. It's not that I became an atheist or anything. My family is very religious, and I still believe in God and all that jazz. No, the reason I sort of stopped going was because my friends stopped going. They decided that they were fed up of Mass and they didn't want to go any more. Even though I wasn't sure whether I fully agreed with them, I didn't want to be the odd one out, so I stopped going too. Looking back, it's funny really because most of us were afraid to tell our parents about our decision. So, every Saturday evening we would pretend to go to Mass but would actually stroll around town or chat up the girls instead. Whatever it is - whether it's drinking or not going to Mass, or whatever - I think it's better to make up your own mind about what you want to do rather than have others make up your mind for you. It was a mistake for me to stop going to Mass just because my friends were no longer going. That wasn't the cleverest basis on which to make a decision. I should have had the courage to do my own thing. I can see that now. David |
| SPICE GIRL CLONES I like to think I'm not one of the crowd myself, but I can't say the same about my sister, Linda. This year she's really into the Spice Girls in a big way. Just because her friends are! Linda has Spice Girls posters all over her room. She tries to dress like the Spice Girls, even though my parents won't let her wear anything too skimpy. And a few weeks ago, when her friends decided they wanted to get their tongues pierced, just like Mel B, Linda announced she would get stud in her tongue too. Luckily enough, we live in the country, and they couldn't find any place or anyone who would do it for them. I wouldn't be surprised what else Linda is up to or what she has done in the past, because she will just go along with her friends. She says they're the coolest people on earth; so whatever they decide to do she is with them all the way. Claire |
| A SMOKER'S LAMENT I started smoking four years ago when I was 15. It was the thing to do. All my friends in school smoked. It made us feel grown up, and they also said it would help us stay thin. In the beginning I didn't smoke much - maybe five or six a day. Mostly in school or with my friends. I couldn't smoke at home. My parents would kill me if they found out. My mother has bronchitis, and she and my father were always warning me of the dangers of smoking. But I just said "Yea, okay," and then ignored them. I regret that now. I regret that I listened to my friends more than to my parents. At the moment, I am smoking more than 20 Rothmans a day. I know that smoking is dangerous and stupid, particularly for someone with a family history like mine, but I find it so hard to give it up now. Margaret. |
| ADVICE THAT CHANGED MY LIFE One thing I can tell you for sure - there's nothing glamorous about being an unmarried mother. I gave birth to Dean when I was 16. I love him very much. He's nearly two now, and he means the world to me; but when I first discovered I was pregnant I was numb with shock. I couldn't believe it. I had just finished my GCSEs; and I was planning to do my A Levels and go on to college. I had plotted out my future career but getting pregnant changed everything. It turned my whole life upside down. Dean's father, Alan, was the first boy I had ever slept with. I was at a disco that night with some friends, and I had got drunk. I fancied Alan. He was a hunk. Everybody at the party seemed to be making out, and my friends told me to go for it. I was so stupid for getting drunk in the first place, and then for listening to my friends. But my parents were wonderful about the whole thing. They were hurt and upset and they cried a lot but they stood by me all the way. They still do. Which is more that I can say for Alan. In a few years time, I hope to finally go to college and build a life for myself and Dean. But there's one bitter lesson I've learned from what happened to me: don't always listen to what your friends say. Don't always go with the flow. Peer pressure can be a very destructive thing. It certainly changed my life. Alison |
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Who Am I? I am a person like no body else in the world. I am the people I have met. I am the experiences I have had. I am the mistakes I have made and the wisdom I have gained from them. I am the lessons I have learned and the ones I have given. I am the good times in my life and the bad ones too. I am the emotions I have felt and the thoughts I have thought. God, I am the life I have lived. Although it’s not a perfect one, understand that I’m doing the best I can with what you have given me. Because all that I have to work with is … is me. |
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| At Clonard Monastery we try to reach out
to young people in two main ways;
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