Scouts on the road

One summer we had a scout camp in Switzerland. We went there by bus. It was a long, long journey so we stopped at a gas station in Germany. We got out of the bus and we were given a litte snack: crispbread with Nutella, because we were in Germany. I remeber this so well because it was so weird and it must have looked weird; a big group of scouts, sitting in front of the gas station, eating crispbread with Nutella. But it was fun and it tasted good.

Image: 'Nutella'

 

Time of our lives

Youth is an exciting time. Youth is the time when you are trying to figure out “who I am” and “what I’m going to do in the future.” Youth is also the time when you have the right to be a little stupid and reckless because when you grow up you have to act like a grown up.

Teens are often testing their limits. They might start drinking or using drugs. They hang out with their friends “all day, all night”. Teens will do almost anything because they want to feel free. And this is because of “baby boomers” and I don’t mean that negatively. Baby boomers were the forerunners. They followed the idea that they had the freedom to come and go. Peace, love, free sex and flower power were their ideology. That has really helped us millennials. We can be whoever we want to be and dress up the way we want to. And thanks to the internet we can express ourselves more easily than ever. That also helps us find people who are similar to us and share our experiences with them.

When we compare teenage cultures in different countries, there aren’t so many differences. Teens in Singapore and teens in Finland spend their free time by going to movies or shopping or meeting their friends. Taste of music is also pretty much the same. the Internet has a lot to do with that. We get lots of information and influences about other cultures. And that is good because it unites youngsters all over the world.

I haven’t actually realized what kind of opportunities we youngsters have. We are the ones who choose what we are going to do for the rest of our lives and what kind of people we are going to be. Nobody else is going to make that decision for us. So many choices, so many opportunities. Good that it isn’t the end of the world if we make mistakes and good that we are not alone. We have parents and friends who support us. And even though everybody always complains how teens are nothing but trouble, we are going to be good people.