That's what friends are for

It's a fact of life that friends influence one another. But most of the time, people assume it's bad influence! Why not spread what's good? Here, some questions regarding friendship and your role as an advocate of pure love:

What do I do if a friend wears a blouse with a plunging neckline or super short shorts?

As a woman, you understand how the lines of appropriate dressing can be blurred in the name of fashion. So instead of giving your friend rules like "Only wear shirts with sleeves and a neckline two fingers below the collarbone or higher," or "Only wear skirts up to the knees or longer," which, honestly, do seem to leave too little room for personal opinions, share with her some fashion magazine pictures that show women in stylish and modest clothes. Or go shopping together! With perseverance, your friendship and fashion advice can help her see that there is true freedom in choosing to dress with dignity. Plus, you both come out more stylish for it!

How can I help an unmarried friend who tells me she is pregnant?

She needs you more than ever, so don't abandon her! Listen to her, ask her how she is, and pray for her. Help her to want to make only the good choices from now on. People can be cruel to women in this situation; they gossip about her, call her names, and some even suggest abortion! As her friend, you should love her more. Don't lie to her, though: don't tell her what she did was right! But do help her see that there is always hope, even in the worst cases, and that you're gonna be there to help her make the best of the situation and get back up again. And perhaps, someday, when she's ready, she can make a good confession, which never fails to make one feel deeply happy! 

As an ordinary girl, what can I do to promote pure love?

Live it. In the way you act, in the way you dress, and in the way you speak, you're already promoting a certain stand on how a lady should behave. I'm not saying you should put on a show every minute; if purity of heart is something you deeply care about, then it will naturally flow from you! Keep on studying, strengthening and growing in your faith--that is the foundation of pure love. And keep praying for wisdom, courage, the right words, and cheerfulness--those are your fuel and ammunition. 

Then, infect all of your friends.   

"Blessed is the influence of one true, loving human soul on another."-George Eliot

'Is there any hope for me?'

Photo from leahdarrow.com

I had a conversation with one of my friends a few weeks ago, and we got to talking about a friend of hers who "lost herself" in a culture of modelling and everything that went with it. One of the things my friend said reminded me of Leah Darrow, who used to be a contestant in America's Next Top Model.

My friend said, how could she (referring to her friend) go back to what it was before if she already gave everything away? And my answer was, look at Leah Darrow.

What Leah says in that video is striking. She says she had a vision that she was at the end of her life, facing God, and offering up to Him the last thing she had ever done--which was posing for a photoshoot wearing something she was ashamed of. Because of it, Leah walked out of the shoot, and out of the modelling world.

This is what a lot of people easily forget: that they can correct the missteps they've made by finding it in themselves to want to change. The most effective first step to a change of heart and a change of lifestyle is to go to confession and talk to a priest. (Don't worry, there's no sin so new that a priest hasn't heard before... and besides, he speaks for God, who loves you!)

It's not about your past (no matter how bad it was)--it's about what you're doing now and to Whom your heart really belongs now. If that weren't true, then there wouldn't be great people like St. Paul or St. Peter. So, in answer to the question heading this post:

Yes, there is always hope as long as the person is willing to make that change, and to make it a change for good.


"Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future."-Oscar Wilde