I am an atheist. There, I said it. Is there anything wrong with that? No, I don't believe that I'm profane, or that I'm going to hell; I don't even believe in hell or heaven or God. I wasn't always like this, though. My views on Christianity have changed over the course of my lifetime.

When I was younger, there was a Jehovah's witness who used to come over our house and teach my mother about the Bible, God, and Christianity. She gave me a book of Bible stories and I memorized them because they were so interesting. I loved that book, and I still have it today.

I wasn't seriously Christian, and neither was our family. We never attended church. We never prayed. I went to preschool at a Jewish temple, but I never thought anything of it. For a while, I believed in God and heaven. But somehow it just faded away, just like my belief in Santa Claus and the tooth fairy. After a while, the lady who gave me the book stopped coming, and that was the end of our religious education.

I doubt God exists. If he had, wouldn't there have been a sign? I need proof. Religion is something people have to get them through their lives, knowing they are protected and safe. As conceited as it sounds, I don't really need that. I like to think I can manage on my own. And as depressing as it is, I don't think we go to heaven if we're good and hell if we're bad. I think we just rot in the ground and become compost for the grasses in the cemetery.

I don't know what happened then, but now, religion makes me uncomfortable. Every time I step into a church and see people praying or listening to sermons, I feel like I don't belong. I just sit in one of the pews and pretend to admire the pretty stained glass windows. It's even worse when our family has dinner with devoutly religious families. When they say prayers before they eat, I usually have a look of bewilderment on my face, and then I look at everyone to see what they do. When I clasp my hands together and put my head down, like everyone else, I feel really fake and artificial. I don't believe in what they're saying, and yet, I act like one of them. Religion is not for me. I can still remember most of the Bible stories, but now I think that's just what they are- stories. People are entitled to their own opinion of the world around them. Oh, and psst, just between you and me, I think Christmas is truly just another gimmick to get presents and send cards. It's ok, though. Presents are good.

"I can still remember most of the Bible stories, but now I think that's just what they are- stories..."

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