Sixteen-year-old Querby Janvier thinks that some teenagers are not working hard enough in school. She says that there are always those people who think that school is a joke -- only to regret it later. “Teens should really think about how much what they do now affects their future,” says Janvier, who attends the John D. O’Bryant School of Math & Sci- ence. “Being a teenager does not last long so you’ve got to make it worthwhile.” Being a teen is not all fun and games. Adoles- cence is the time when you should actually think about what you are going to do with your future. Not everyone realizes this before it’s too late. “I think that teens these days are too focused on the present and not the future,” says Nataly Garcia, 16, from the O’Bryant. “We waste our free time and then when we don’t have any, we complain about being stressed out.” Klea Hima, 17, says that a lot of teens don’t have any plan for today -- and thus none for tomorrow. “They let their future in the hands of time and do nothing to pursue their dreams,” says Hima, from the O’Bryant. “I would give them and myself the advice to take action into our own hands and not let little mistakes get into the way of doing what we love most.”

The themes of love -- or better called fantasy -- are fascinating. Many young people feel that love in freshman year is about taking things slowly. Fifteen-year-old Alejandra Lopera, from Brighton High School, thinks that someone is always going to be there for you. “It’s like you are getting to know how people treat you and the sacrifices they made to show how much they love you,” says Lop- era. “And sometimes you feel like nobody loves you, but in reality there are people that love you more than you think.” Marvelis Perez, 14, from Boston Community Leadership Academy, feels that everything changes in high school. “I see that everyone has a girlfriend or a boyfriend, they talk a lot about them,” says Perez. “It’s very different from middle school. In freshman year, it’s normal that everyone has a relationship.” Fourteen-year-old Djenafra Daveiga, from BCLA, believes that freshman love is about experiencing something new. “Your heart beats fast, butterflies in your stomach,” says Daveiga. “You start smiling a lot with just a thought of that certain person.”

Gucci, Prada, Vera Wang. These are all handbags that teen girls go crazy about. Sixteen-year-old Querby Janvier, from the John D. O’Bryant School of Math & Science, says that she enjoys brand name bags because they are part of her style and express her individuality. “I feel like on top of the world when I leave my house,” says Janvier, who prefers Vera Wang bags because she also likes Vera Wang’s dress designs. Many teens feel that fancy handbags are part of fashion and are used to mix and match with outfits. They also have room for critical items such as wallets, phones, keys, and school work. “A fancy bag is important to me because it holds things that I need daily,” says Klea Hima, a senior at the O’Bryant. Ivany Gomes, a senior at Boston International/New- comers Academy, believes that inexpensive handbags are fine, too, as long as they look good with your clothing. Gomes believes the most important accessory to carry around is your personality.

My dad really wanted to continue school but wasn’t able to due to financial instability in his family, in Haiti. So he decided to volunteer to help other students with their homework. Using his intelligence, he came up with an idea to make students learn faster by studying in groups. A number of students benefited from his program academically and they also gained confidence. This put a smile on a lot of students’ faces and their parents decided to make it a job and pay my dad. Several years later, my father decided to open a business. Every Friday and Saturday, my mom and dad went to the market to sell chickens that they raised. Then, my dad opened his own market and hired people to work there. Eventually, my father went back to school and became an engineer, which was always his goal. My dad always said he came from a poor family but that his dream was to become a successful man and role model for his children.

One of the hardest questions to ask somebody is: What is intelligence? There are no right or wrong answers. It’s very common for people to cite examples of wealthy or famous people. But you don’t have to go too far to see that it’s all around you. I used to think that intelligence was only found in those who went to school. They have intelligence for following rules that are implanted in school and for doing what is told. But others have it, too. What’s the difference between the president’s intelligence and a farmer’s intelligence? Opposite positions in society, but both working in order to create change. A car is planned by a designer but you need a mechanic to keep it running. Intelligence is universal.