Article March 13, 2006 Issue

FOR TEENS

'I was grasping for SOMETHING DEEPER'

BY ALYSSA BERNSTEIN

THERE'S A CARDBOARD WHEEL on my door that reads, "Things To Do Instead of Doin' It," in bright blue letters. When you're really at a loss for alternatives to making out, you spin the wheel to select different activities, such as "Go out and . . . Go to a concert!" "Stay in and . . . Read poetry to each other!"

I took this handy tool, courtesy of the New York State Health Department, and hung it on my bedroom wall at home as a joke—I wasn't looking to avoid any of the action I got. I had just graduated from a small boarding school where hook-up opportunities were few and far between, and I wanted to learn as much as possible about making out. And learn I did—I indulged in a lot, minus sexual intercourse, with a few people—and had some shallow, and unfulfilling, relationships.

It's not like I wasn't a strong Christian Scientist. I was and am a member of The Mother Church and my branch Church of Christ, Scientist, and I had just come out of my ninth summer at a Christian Science camp.

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About the author

Alyssa thinks that everything is better with chocolate chips. She is currently in Boston from her hometown, New Haven, Connecticut, to help launch TMCYouth.com. In September, she will be a freshman at Yale University. She welcomes feedback and questions to bernsteina@csps.com.

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