Decisions

This week we began research for our Junior Theme topics.  This began with the writing of three to five "why" questions.  Having no idea what I wanted to  research, I began with a question about America and its connectedness to religion, one about education in America, and one about the growing socioeconomic gap.


In the library on Monday I encountered many books that interested me, and ended up revising my list of questions.  I kept the one about religion, but decided I wasn't as interested in the other questions.  I added a question about gay rights, not because I had an agenda, but because I simply don't know enough about it to form my own opinion separate from that of my friends and parents.


That night I met with my book group, which includes about ten high schoolers from my church, and my youth pastor and his wife.  We are currently reading a book by Shane Claiborne called The Irresistible Revolution.  The book focuses on how we are to show God's love to others, and Claiborne is an excellent example of this idea.  The chapter we were reading led to a discussion about prisons, and how people who are imprisoned are ministered to.


Our youth pastor told us about visiting the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center a few weeks ago, and getting to talk with some of the guards who work there.  I began to think about changing my question again because I am fascinated by how people think and why people respond as they do to certain situations.  Now my question is, "why is juvenile detention considered an effective method of punishment for kids?"


Maybe changing ideas and being indecisive isn't always a bad thing.  It opens up new possibilities and new ideas to explore.