Teens on-line finds joys of instant mail

Unlike the teens of previous generations, however, they aren't talking on the phone; they're emailing or instant messaging their friends.

"I'm on every day for an hour to an hour-and-a-half," said Laura Seestadt, a 16-year-old parishioner of Our Lady of Mercy in Colonie. "I prefer using the internet over the phone."

Buddy list

For keeping in touch with her CLI friends who live in all parts of the Diocese, email is best, she said, "or else I'd have a big phone bill. The ones that I'm the best friends with live an hour away."

Using email she was able to arrange for former CLI-ers to come together at a local mall in order to catch up in person.

Staying in touch

If she has a question for them about the outing and she can't get through on the phone, she will instant message them to get a quick response.

"Instant messages are even better than email, said Laura. "They're a fast and easy way to communicate."

Connected

"I don't spend a lot of time emailing my friends. I use instant messaging a lot," she explained. "I'm usually online for two hours every day, talking to my friends from school or CLI."

While Katie uses the computer to communicate with friends from school, the internet provides an easy way to keep in touch with CLI friends.

"I think its important to maintain these friendships because if I was in need of help, I could turn to my friends from CLI," she said. "We bonded so well, and we got to know we each other."

The thrill that some people get when they discover they have mail is the same thrill that Katie experiences when she receives email. She said, "It makes me feel important. And I love getting mail."

On-line generation

For these teens, using the computer to communicate is as ordinary as using the phone is for their parents. For this reason, the NFCYM uses email to keep in touch with the youth it serves. Youth who participate in NFCYM conferences can sign up to get regular email updates from the organization about initiatives important to Catholic youth.

For Laura, using the computer to communicate is vital. "I love the computer," she said. "I couldn't live without it."

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