2012-04-18  FIHK                       Keep going!

Last week this English page had a very special article about youth suicide.
The article was written to encourage young people to "keep going" when life is difficult.
The article's main idea was: don't give up; think of your family and friends who want you to keep going.
The sincerity of the writer and the genuineness of the story were quite moving.
That's the sort of story young people will take notice of.

Helping young people these days is not easy. Now, more than ever before, words have little effect by themselves. As someone said not long ago "young people no longer listen to teachers, unless they practice what they preach". The main way to help young people in today's high-pressure society is by good example. If a mother or father tell their children "Don't smoke", but they themselves smoke, their words mean little. But if a parent doesn't smoke, then the words "Don't smoke" carry weight.

One of the best true-life stories I've come across recently in Hong Kong is the story about "Ben" ((Chinese: Keung Bing Yu)).
Ben had a rough early life, got into drugs, was in and out of detention centres,  nearly died from an overdose, then through his girlfriend and the help of a special centre he gradually got off drugs, started his life again, and now helps other people to re-start their lives.

Ben received an award from C.Y. Leung in 2008 for being one of Hong Kong's "Ten Outstanding Young Persons".
I thoroughly recommend Ben's book  (...Chinese title...) to young people. It's a great encouragement to "keep going"!