Young people??? Teenagers???

Jnana · 10-27-2008, 08:54 PM

Okay young people, here's a problem I could use some help with. I'm attempting to mentor a 15 year old who is very aware of the mess the world is in. He is very upset by all of the people who don't understand how much damage they are doing to the world and themselves. He cares more about animals than people. He would just as soon kill the people he sees as harmful. Seriously. Not that I think he is about to act on that, but he says he would not feel bad about it. We discussed this at length yesterday and I started telling him about concepts such as Karma. He has little knowledge of such things, but seemed interested. What might make him understand and feel his connection with other people with the same intensity as his feeling for animals? He's had a rough life so far. Any ideas?

Sorry if this seems like hijacking the thread, but I could really use some help here. Consider it one discussion topic among many.

sleepybrown84 · 10-27-2008, 09:10 PM

Hey Jnana,

I think that he might just need some more exposure to the world, especially with kids his own age. Maybe he could join a sports team? Or some sort of club? Is he in school? Any school activities he enjoys that could be done with other kids?

I can understand how he feels, I was similar when i was younger.. was always interested in animals and nature. Actually, maybe this can be his tool to interact with others and see that not everyone is bad! Are there any sort of groups that get together to explore animals/biology?

Maybe even a trip to the museum will spark that sense of appreciation for the world, you never know. Hope that helped! Good luck,

Mark

10-27-2008, 08:54 PM	#1
Jnana Avalon Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Indiana Posts: 653	Re: Young people??? Teenagers??? Okay young people, here's a problem I could use some help with. I'm attempting to mentor a 15 year old who is very aware of the mess the world is in. He is very upset by all of the people who don't understand how much damage they are doing to the world and themselves. He cares more about animals than people. He would just as soon kill the people he sees as harmful. Seriously. Not that I think he is about to act on that, but he says he would not feel bad about it. We discussed this at length yesterday and I started telling him about concepts such as Karma. He has little knowledge of such things, but seemed interested. What might make him understand and feel his connection with other people with the same intensity as his feeling for animals? He's had a rough life so far. Any ideas? Sorry if this seems like hijacking the thread, but I could really use some help here. Consider it one discussion topic among many. Last edited by Jnana; 10-27-2008 at 08:57 PM.

10-27-2008, 09:10 PM	#2
sleepybrown84 Avalon Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Ottawa, Canada Posts: 2	Re: Young people??? Teenagers??? Hey Jnana, I think that he might just need some more exposure to the world, especially with kids his own age. Maybe he could join a sports team? Or some sort of club? Is he in school? Any school activities he enjoys that could be done with other kids? I can understand how he feels, I was similar when i was younger.. was always interested in animals and nature. Actually, maybe this can be his tool to interact with others and see that not everyone is bad! Are there any sort of groups that get together to explore animals/biology? Maybe even a trip to the museum will spark that sense of appreciation for the world, you never know. Hope that helped! Good luck, Mark