I'm sure if we're all being honest, we'd love to go back in time, even just for a moment, to tell our younger selves things we know now that we wished we had in the past. These can be serious, such as "Remember to appreciate your family," or even just "Stay away from that orange self tanner; you'll look like you rolled around in Doritos." Since I'll be turning 20 years old this summer, I thought I would share a list of things and lessons I would love to share with myself 5 years ago at the ripe old age of 15.
1. Don't become obsessed or hung up over boys in high school. Quite a few of them that you'll run into are just over sized toddlers that don't know how to be relationship material and aren't worth wasting your time and attention on.
2. If you ever start to think differently, read number 1 again. Multiple times.
3. Never forget to respect your elders. Whether it's your parents, teachers, or even just the cashier at Walmart, please be an example of the fact that not all teenagers are rude delinquents.
4. Thick, raccoon-style eye makeup is not the look for you, unless you're in a My Chemical Romance music video.
5. Friday nights in are not a bad thing. You'll grow to love them dearly in a few years.
6. Pay attention to the things your family says about your friends; chances are, they'll notice the fake ones well before you do.
7. Social media and the number of likes you get on a selfie are irrelevant and have no reflection on your value as a human being.(Also, please reduce the number of selfies you take on a regular basis.)
8. Sunscreen is important. So are vegetables.
9. Do yourself a favor and stay away from all forms of energy drinks.
10. Spending time with the Lord is more important than you think it is.
11. You'll never stop being weird, and that's okay.
12, Follow your heart, but make sure you take your brain along, too.
13. Never ever ever stop being a bookworm.
14. Pity parties aren't cool.
15. Whatever it is you're upset about, I guarantee it's probably not the end of the world.
Listing these things I would love to tell myself five years ago has made me remember just how childish and ridiculous I used to be, but it's also made me extremely grateful and appreciative of the person I've tried to become since 2011. I'm sure when I turn twenty five I'll have plenty of advice for myself at twenty, but I suppose that's just part of growing up. What would you tell your teenage self?
