Friends

I’ve always envisioned that we could avoid the peer pressure.

I was, until something unexpected happened.

Someone close to me was caught red-handed smoking in a restricted area. That person was punished. Let’s call that person H.

When I first heard of it, I couldn’t believe that H was guilty. So, I asked the elderly to look into it and somehow, confront the admin/person in charge. I asked too many questions enough to make them spill the beans.

H was indeed wrong. I could feel a sense of losing. Losing a good person who had been guarding himself from such thing. The elderly was tearing and perhaps, was feeling worse than I do.

I had a hard time to digest the situation. Although it wasn’t a serious subject to some, but it was to me and those who are close to me. In some aspect, it symbolised a defeat or failure.

I asked myself, to what extent can a teenager hold himself from being influenced? I’d imagine H was having a hard time stopping himself from smoking when in fact, he was placed in the same room with smoking teenagers. The room mates were chain smoker. I remember the elderly told me that the room was filled with cigar when they first arrived. As a parent, the elderly was worried but due to some unknown reasons, they had no choice but to let H stays there.

I thought H was the end. Nobody I’m close with would ever do it again. I was wrong.

From these cases and plenty other, I could suggest that peer pressure and friends are incredibly important in shaping one’s life.

On a different note, I am asking what can we do to prevent this?

How can we save a teenager from getting involved?

What does it take for the authority to realise that some people are worthy of a stricter surveillance?

I blamed three parties in H case; H himself, the room mates and the authority.

H was guilty for letting his guard down.

The mates were wrong for being jerks who smoked in the room when that is obviously against the regulations.

The authority; for being notorious even when he was informed of the H’s room mates illegal activity.

In short, I hope that teenagers would be able to protect themselves from peer pressure. Looking cool doesn’t mean if you have to do what all kids are doing. Being cool is the ability to differentiate the rights from the wrongs. It’s called maturity.

Stand up for yourself and never let others control you.

Till then, may peace be upon you.