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 Amy has been writing regularly for this website since its formation. She is now in her last year at school. Previously she wrote in the family thought section but her amblings have been so enjoyable we have decided to give her, her own section. You can expect something new from Amy at the end of each month (when school work, her part time job and social interests don't get in the way). |
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Of late, my amblings have wandered far from any notion of diary entries or blogs. In fact, I’ve been wandering quite a bit myself over the past year or so. A heady summer spent travelling led to some serious self questioning, with little to no answers thrown up – quite perturbing for someone who always knew their own mind. Aged 21 now, and having twisted free from a nasty old period in time, I’ve acquiesced to the fact that my requisite dose of angst merrily pops up in my system whenever it likes, relegating any conviction and faith to nether regions (somewhere between trigonometry and irregular verb tables). I seem to be always very unsure of myself, clumsy with words and verging on over-cynicism. A real citizen of inconstant thought. What’s worse, despite the great freedom I have, I’m realising that 21 can be a very self-centred dot in time if I don’t take care to check myself.
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Have We Anything New to Say? |
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The other day I was typing away at my desk, listening to my friend draped herself listlessly across my bed spouting off about her latest date dilemma. Halfway through the conversation (which consisted of a substantial number of ‘hmmm’s’ and ‘ahhh’s’ on my part) she sat up and proclaimed, ‘what are you working at anyway Amy?!”
“Oh it’s just this sonnet essay I’ve to hand into Professor Todd by tomorrow.” “Ah that one.” She resumed her draped position.
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Speak up Lord, my hearing ain't that good |
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Sometimes I think it's a real pity that God doesn't work as conspicuously as he does in cartoons etc-a nice big lightening bolt or booming voice reminiscent of the Book of Daniel would prove most useful at times when we look to God to guide us in the right direction. Unfortunately, God doesn't work like the M1. The Christian is perhaps the most intrepid explorer of all, for we cannot rely on a billboard telling us the correct path to choose. Nor can we wander along with our eyes skyward turned, for we would miss the wonderful little everyday happenings that add value to our lives. What the Christian must do is look to the very bottom of their being, for God dances in many places.
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"Pick me! Oo o pick me!" We recall our five-year-old war cries on the playground as we all scrabbled to get into the best teams. Now consider the plethora of seventeen/eighteen year olds (not any wiser!), scrabbling equally frantically for university places next September…and I know where I'd rather be! With personal statements to be written, admissions tests and interviews, we really are beginning to feel the pressure of being 'grown up'. But who will have us? And realistically, how much help can we expect from 'the Big Man upstairs?!'
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Norn Iron’s canaries come to rest in the Pyrenees! |
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Well, it's back to school for the last time for me as I'm entering Upper sixth…but what a summer it was! I decided back in May to apply to join the Down and Connor Youth Team for the annual pilgrimage to Lourdes, helping to care for the sick and invalid. I had read about this venture last summer but had neglected to apply. However, as I sat on Saturday evening at mass, distractedly reading the bulletin, I noted the pilgrimage was running again, and felt a curious sense that it was time to join.
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"Alright babes, how's those keepy-ups coming along?!" shouted over number fifteen from the subs bench. After my exams finished last Wednesday, I was immediately thrown into an environment I certainly would never normally have considered, never mind enjoy…me, and football? Why spend the first days of your summer holidays as a glorified ball girl? Well, number 15 and his teammates were certainly no prima Donna football queens.
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Wow-is the year flying in or what?! Living life in fast mode is all very well in the short term, but when you have less than a year and a half of school left, one wants to shout, "Stop! Let me appreciate the here and now!" The "there and then" as it were, is often a frightening prospect.
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Sharing our faith is a privilege |
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As lower sixths (seventeen year olds), you may be mistaken for assuming we are all a mis-mash of angst-ridden teens, happiest in our beds. Perhaps that is true(!), but this month I'd like to tell you about an exciting little project some of my friends and I have embarked upon. |
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 Self-image and self-esteem present possibly the biggest challenges to young people in contemporary society. Indeed, all teens know that a cigarette thrust in our faces is the least of our worries. Sex, drugs and alcohol encompass only a small minority the daily tribulations we face. As teenagers, we are at a confusing and fundamental stage in our lives.
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"Search" - and ye shall find! |
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I would never say I'm one to shirk from a challenge, so when my friend asked me to go on a 'Search' weekend with her at the end of November, I was all for it. Our college, Garron Tower, is a major host of these young Christian retreat weekends, and we enlisted easily by simply filling in consent forms provided by our college priest, Fr Fitzsimmons.
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