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Hooked The writer gets hooked, goes to rehab, and then becomes determined to stay clean. Ask the students: Does the writer just rely on her willpower to stay clean? (No: She changes schools and friends, because she knows that there are too many cues and temptations if she doesn’t get into a completely new setting.)
Ask when they knew she was going to relapse. (Most people will say it’s when she runs into her old drug buddy, Talia, at her old school (in the section, Meeting My Past, p. 6). Elicit a discussion: Can you really stop taking drugs if you still hang around the people and places where you got addicted—or do you have to make a complete break? What do students think would be harder, quitting the drugs or quitting your friends? Why? Note: Facilitators leading these discussions should have a sophisticated understanding of addiction and recovery. These stories invite a dialogue that goes beyond a simplistic “just say no” approach.
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About
our books Stories from Represent have been anthologized in several books by Youth Communication. The Heart Knows Something Different (Persea Books, 1996) is a collection of personal essays first published in FCYU; in addition, The Struggle to Be Strong: True Stories By Teens About Resilience (Free Spirit, 2000), Things Get Hectic: Teens Write About the Violence That Surrounds Them (Simon & Schuster, 1998) and Out With It: Gay and Straight Teens Write About Homosexuality (Youth Communication, 1996) feature stories from Represent, as well as from New Youth Connections (NYC), our other teen-written magazine. |
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