I’m a seventeen-year-old boy preparing for my A Level exams at the end of the year. In the society where my peers and I live, we tend to accept the rat race values. As students, we want to get good grades so that we can get good jobs. I enjoy studying and have consistently received A’s in my classes. There was a year when I finished first in my class in the final exams. It was a great accomplishment.

Another one I am pleased with is that I managed to improve the relationship between Mum and Dad. Dad was a successful businessman who was rarely at home. Mum was a housewife who always felt bored and constantly nagged (唠叨) him to let her go to work. Their constant arguing bothered me, so I advised Dad that Mum would be better off with a part-time job. He agreed, and their relationship has improved since then.

My most proud achievement, however, is my successful work in the local old folks’ home. My grandparents had raised me since I was a child. I wept (哭泣) bitterly when they died. Unlike many of my classmates, I do not take part in my school’s community service to earn points. I enjoy my voluntary work and believe I’m contributing to a worthwhile cause. This is where I can help. I talk to the elderly, assist them with their daily life, and listen to their problems, glory days and the hardships they experienced.

Last year, I hosted a successful New Year party for the elderly and they enjoyed a great time. Many expressed a desire to attend another party the following year. When I reflect on my accomplishments, I’m especially proud of my service at the old folks’ home, so I hope to study social work at university and work as a social worker in the future. I wish to be more skilled in attending to the less fortunate as well as find great satisfaction in it.

Teenage life is quite dramatic but that doesn’t mean you cannot enjoy your life in these years. Even with your daily troubles, your life is not very hard if you know how to deal with them.

I know exactly how you feel. Teenage life can be hard. You are not a kid anymore, because you are smart enough to consider your surroundings. However, you are still not an adult because there are still lots of experiences that you need to have and lessons that you need to learn from these experiences. Above all, the hormonal (荷尔蒙的) imbalance in your body can really mess you up. I have been there. I was in it for six years exploring what life is about!

As a teenager, I had a major problem completing my routine tasks on time. And at that time, all that I needed to do was to finish my homework, study for the upcoming tests and clean my room. Now, I have much more things to do: cooking, cleaning and working while keeping a balance between all my relationships related to work, family and friends. That really is a lot of work. So, I will just give you one golden tip, “Never leave that till tomorrow which you can do today.”

Life becomes much easier now because I finish all my work on time and I have enough time to let my hair down. Half the problems of a teenager appear because we hate doing things. We’d rather go and have fun than sit down and take on our responsibilities. That is why you have so much trouble in your life; your parents won’t let you go out with friends because you haven’t cleaned your room or your teacher is always criticizing you because you haven’t finished your homework.