Having done four lectures on this, my first-ever day of high-school talks (having previously spoken almost exclusively to young adults), and afterward enjoying coffee with delightful locals, Chastity Gal is turning in early. I do have some stories I would like to share, but, with four more talks at area high schools scheduled for tomorrow (and three for Wednesday), most of them will have to wait 'til I get some rest.
For now, I'll note that the students seemed interested when I told them what Pope John Paul II called "the opposite of love." It's not hate, as some of them guessed when I asked them what they thought it would be, nor is it indifference. It's use.
"People sometimes use people because they hate them," I said. "But you don’t have to hate someone to use them. That’s why use is more dangerous than hate. You can use someone while fooling yourself into thinking you love them." That enabled me to lead into explaining how practicing chastity enables us to love truly and sacrificially, whether in friendship, marriage, or any other relationship.
I'd like to say thanks very much to those who responded to my request for prayers for me on this unusually intensive tour, and also to Jason Evert, whose online advice on "How to Give a Chastity Talk" to high-schoolers proved invaluable.
