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Dear Susie — Illustrations, Wrestling and Purity Rings
by Susie Shellenberger

sketch Dear Susie:
Where do you get your pictures for fiction stories? Do you get some off the Internet? Do you have to ask permission before you do?

Wondering

Dear Wondering:
Our design team either assigns a photographer to take photos to illustrate a fiction piece, or they assign an artist to illustrate the piece through drawing or painting.

Sometimes our designers purchase stock photos from the Internet.

Wrestle Dear Susie:
My friend really wants to join the wrestling team. That would obviously mean wrestling with the guys, because there isn’t a girls’ team. She wants me to join with her. I think I’d love it, because at her youth group we have wrestling wars on the trampoline, and it’s a blast. But I’m having doubts about joining . . . because of a few obvious reasons. I know there are some awkward possible pin positions, but I might be able to avoid them. I like the adrenaline I get when wrestling, and most of the guys on the team are nice, and some of them go to her youth group.

Considering

Dear Considering:
A question/answer column reflects the opinion of its author, so this is strictly my opinion. I have problems with it. Let’s start with the wrestling wars at youth group on the trampoline. I’m questioning why a church would allow that—not only for the obvious reasons of girls and guys being on top of each other, but also as a major insurance problem. It would take a tremendous amount of insurance for a church to cover a teen who is hurt in a trampoline accident!

As you know, wrestling involves a huge amount of intimate physical contact. Oftentimes, a wrestler’s arm will be under the crotch area of his opponent so he can flip him over and secure the position he needs to win. That just seems inappropriate for a guy to do that to you, or for you to do that to a guy. And remember: you won’t always be wrestling against the nice guys on your team; often it’ll be against another team, and all the guys might not be so nice.

Again . . . just my personal opinion. I encourage you to discuss this in depth with your parents. They may have an entirely different take on it than I do.

Ring Dear Susie:
Where can I get a purity ring that isn’t too expensive? I have small hands, and sometimes it’s hard for me to find a good fit.

Seeking

Dear Seeking:
We’re excited that you want to wear your commitment to stay sexually pure until marriage! A purity ring or necklace is cool, but the most important thing is your commitment—not the jewelry.

My personal favorite is factory79.com. They have the biggest assortment of purity jewelry I’ve seen at affordable prices.

This article appeared in Brio magazine in May 2008. Copyright © 2008 Focus on the Family. All rights reserved. International copyright secured.

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