The revision pressure for mocks will soon start mounting. How do we help our young people stay committed to loving God and loving their mates amidst the pressure?
Starting with the latter, check out these 2 stories:
A final year university student was woken at 5am by a call from a panicking friend. The two students were part-way through their 48 hour open exam and Sophie was pulling an all-nighter.
Once Soph was reassured that she wasn’t going to fail, Sarah pulled on a hoodie and scarf over her pjamas and headed out, via the local petrol station. Sophie peered around the front door, surprised and blurry-eyed, as Sarah handed her Galaxy chocolate and a Red Bull, and then turned and tramped back home again.
Nothing was said on the matter until graduation two months later when Sophie’s Mum greeted Sarah with ‘Ah! So you’re the 5am chocolate saviour!’
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As finals bite, the library comes alive with the walking dead! Rows of pasty-faced students working silently away. It is not a place of smiles, or really of much hope. Around comes Mark, with his plastic bag of joy. Chocolate buttons and Jelly Tots – childhood favourites conveniently packaged. As he walks through the library he looks out for his friends, quietly drops a little bag onto their desk, and moves on. Sometimes, when people are looking especially hopeless, he’ll do the same for them, just a random guy, with a little bag of smiles.
Before long Facebook is alive with it – ‘the chocolate angel’ frequenting the aisles, leaving little gifts of joy.
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Your S6s, or year 13s, may not be able to go wandering the streets at 5am but what would make their friends smile?
We are called to be salt and light.
Their mates’ revision time can be a gloomy place, they’re thirsty for salt. Mocks will be followed by final exams. For many, final exams will be followed by university careers. After that, the work pressures of a 9-5 begin.
