The Words of the Schnaap Family

What Does PLA Mean for My Everyday Life?

Nicole Schnapp
Summer 2000

PLA........well, it is definitely something important for me!! I'm living in Germany in one of the bigger cities and there are a lot of people living "the free sex lifestyle". There are so many teens not even thinking what they are doing, but thinking "it's alright!" cause "everybody is doing it". This is a sad fact and people are acting this way all over the world, not thinking of the consequences. But what can I personally do for the PLA? Right now, there are not so many possibilities.......

My first contact with PLA was like about 2 and a half years ago......I had been to a workshop at Easter in Germany and we went leafleting, talking on the streets about PLA. AND: for real, it was SOOOO inspiring!!! I felt so exited and couldn't stop going up to the people and discussing with them!

The funny thing was, I didn't know so much of the content of the PLA, but I really had the feeling that I get the people to think! I always gave the same example they told us: with the plastic, a blue and a red one, putting together, pulling again away from each other, so that you can see blue parts on the red and vice-versa. MAN!! It was sooo much fun! I just couldn't stop!

So ever since this first experience I began to LOVE PLA......

2 years later, again at Easter (it was the year 2000 J ), I flew to Chicago, America, for three weeks to see STF teaching about PLA in High-Schools, learning from them, getting some experiences and broaden my knowledge about PLA-content J . It was quite a spontaneous idea, but it was probably one of the best choices I've made in life!! So, I'm not going to talk so much in detail about that, cause it is not the topic right now, but maybe some other time.....

So, I saw the STF people teaching there, performing in High-Schools and having this high spirit in doing all this, and I thought about Germany and how far away we are from this......

But I took the spirit with me and I felt so inspired coming home. All of us (I went with 3 others from Germany - Stephan, Thea, Susie) had visions doing it the same way here, like teaching in schools, starting to have a "LIVING" PLA!! Cause before that, PLA in Germany was a bit weak. Nobody, or only few people felt responsible for that. But there had been one rally in Berlin and one in London, at the last German winter ws. In between we had a few stands with information about PLA in some cities.

I had been to the rallies and I really had the feeling that I should touch everybody's heart!! While I was screaming, waving with the poster, everybody should feel that I mean him or her, so I looked directly to each of the people watching us.

The PLA issue is so important for me, as I mentioned. A PLA standard is the foundation for good families, a good society, as most of you will know. I felt somehow sorry for the people who were just ignoring what we were doing.

PLA knowledge is important for everyone and could make everyone much more satisfied, but some people are just blind.

My public mindedness is growing each time a bit more when I do something for PLA. But, to be honest, America gave me the "biggest kick", cause I got to know how serious it is, and we can't just close our eyes, let everybody do what they want.....I can't! Everybody should have the opportunity making a healthy choice for themselves, and not be manipulated by the media and other organisations.

I went to the European PLA tour this summer and it gave me the feeling that I can be really proud of what I believe! PLA is a mission, and we are still at the beginning here in Germany doing more for it.

So what are we doing? - We have translated most of the CLUE-Curriculum into German and when we have the time, we want to take the opportunity to start teaching in schools pretty soon. And we are making a Homepage, bringing the issue PLA more in public. We know, it is not easy, I know it is not. But I think, first you have to be proud of something and include God, then you can have the strength to achieve a LOT!!!!

So, coming back to the question: What can I personally do for PLA? - As I mentioned, I don't see so many possibilities for me right now. I talked with some classmates about the issue, but they are absolutely not interested.

They think it is something "unnormal" I guess, or just "impossible". But I think this is also my fault. Maybe I'm just not convinced and proud enough, or I can't show it or they just don't want to understand...., whatever. In school the issue is mostly forgotten. We don't speak about it. And I really don't know, how I can talk to them, when there is no real interest. And the people I am together with, are all my age or older and they have either a boy-(girl-)friend already since a long time, and are not involved in the free sex issue, or they already keep pure till marriage cause of their religion, or they feel attacked if I mention only something in the direction of the PLA content. Cause they know inside it is right and they would loose their feeling of self worth if they admit that they have acted wrongly up until now. It is hard, cause I don't want to hurt them. The people in my school who are really in the issue are those in the lower classes and I don't know them at all.

So in school, I will just wait and see if there are possibilities to talk with people about that. Apart from that, I'm reading the CLUE Curriculum for myself, starting a condition, and I'm going to write words for the German homepage. To mobilize the younger BCs we already gave some lectures about PLA here in Germany. We had conversations, discussions and role-playing. This is really good for us, I think, to make it clear for us, be proud and to have the feeling that we are not alone, so that we can answer each other questions, encourage each other......

I'm really thankful if there are people wanting to know something about PLA, like a Chinese woman who is student in an university. I heard two weeks ago that she is interested and I'm going to meet her next week!!!! This is sooo exciting......Oh my dear, I feel so much responsibility, cause I´m probably the only one who will ever talk with her about PLA and so I'm the "Representative", but anyway, it will work out good, I'm sure.

I think God is helping us in our "mission", preparing the way, we just have to realize it! Maybe the Chinese woman will be one of the most important people who ever heard of the PLA?!

WHO KNOWS?!

We just have to take all the opportunities, be public-minded, and make God proud!!!!

We can achieve a LOT in life! Ready to change society?!

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