They work hard, hoping to change their destiny.

Many school buildings were destroyed during the recent earthquake in Sichuan . The body of a student - with a pencil clenched tightly in his hand - was discovered in the rubble recently. I think he really wanted to be a successful person, but was not given the chance. That's fate. His life, and those of thousands of others, were cruelly taken.

In Hong Kong, we have very good living conditions and a great education system. Also, there are no disasters in this beautiful place.

We should examine our study habits and make the best use of our opportunities.

May Tam, PLK No 1 W.H. Cheung College

Cliques have no benefits

It's lunchtime in school. You see groups of students laughing, talking, and doing all the things teenagers usually do.

But if you take a closer look, you'll realise that these cliques are vastly different. There is the 'popular' group with the trendy looks and latest gadgets, the 'I-couldn't-care-less-about-how-I-look' people, the 'nerds' and more.

They laugh at others behind their backs.

These cliques are not very beneficial to teenagers. You may be able to get away with it now, but when you grow up, you will be forced to work with people from all walks of life.

Your boss doesn't care whether your partner comes from the same background or not. All he'll care about is getting the work done.

If you try harder to relate to others, you may find that you have similar interests, likes and dislikes as them.

After all, you don't judge a book by its cover!

Clarissa

Path to happiness

You should not take things too seriously if you want to be happy. Life is short. If you are always worried, you cannot be happy.

If you have problems, don't think in a negative way.

Some people think that if they want to be happy, they need lots of money, a big house and several cars.

But the true path to happiness is to learn to be content with one's lot.

Vijay Varma, California School

Teach cyber bullies a lesson

Cyber bullying is on the rise, especially with the growing popularity of social networking websites and instant messaging programs.

These provide opportunities for people to post nasty comments about others online. According to a survey published recently in the US, nearly 30 per cent of 1,000 adolescents had experienced cyber bullying in 2004. Most respondents received nasty messages from their peers or had embarrassing photos uploaded on to the internet.

The victims, who are too ashamed to tell their parents or teachers, suffer in silence.

A Young Post article offered some suggestions to help stamp out cyber bullying. For example, students could ignore the insulting photos and messages, save them as evidence and report incidents to the police.

But I think the best option is for parents to communicate more with their children and listen to them patiently.

Schoolmates should also care about the victims, so they don't feel left out. In addition, schools should spread the message that cyber bullying is not acceptable, and organise talks and workshops for the students. And teachers should learn to handle such cases.

Let's make the internet a safer place for surfers.

Rosalind Chan, Methodist College

Healthy message

Our school recently organised a meaningful campaign called 'Fruit Day'. Students were told to eat fresh fruits, such as bananas, apples and oranges, that day.

Teachers also joined the campaign which was aimed at encouraging a healthy lifestyle.

The event was a great success.

Yu Hoi-shing, Caritas Yuen Long Chan Chun Ha Secondary School

Lessons about life from a professor

People always say that life is precious and we should treasure it. I agree.

What should we do to make our life more meaningful? I found the answer after watching a play called Tuesdays with Morrie.

The story revolves around Morrie Schwartz and his relationship with his student, Mitch Albom.

Albom learns many lessons about life from his terminally ill professor. However, Morrie never gives up and tries his best to lead a meaningful life.

I have learned that everyone should accept ageing and death because they are inevitable.

We should forgive others and love the people around us. Family support is very important.

Nowadays many teenagers are reluctant to face problems. In the end the problems become so serious that they commit suicide. This is wrong.

There are many ways to solve problems.

Teenagers can share their feelings with their family and friends, who are always ready to give them a helping hand and encourage them.

Also, they should be optimistic and have faith in life.

Some people with incurable diseases want to live longer but they can't. We are lucky that we can experience the ups and downs of life every day.

Now I realise that I have missed out a lot and need to change my ways.

I hope teenagers can solve all their problems and be happy.

Yip Hiu-tung, Tin Ka Ping Secondary School