I am about to celebrate my half birthday –– yes, I do celebrate that. Now that I am six months away from 21, I have had a while to reflect on my last 20 years of life. During my life I, like everyone else, have had my ups and downs. I have had family members pass away and family members born, made best friends and lost them, went to school and left home. While things have not always been easy, I am blessed about everything that I have experienced. Here are 20 things I have learned during my short 20 years of life!
1. My faith in God is the most important thing in my life.
I was raised Catholic, and when I was in middle school I made a personal choice to commit my life to the way that I was raised. Without my faith, things would be completely different in my life. Church is where I have met most of my great friends. My faith in God is a must in my life.
2. Family comes second.
Many believe that family comes first, but it comes in second –– just barely. Family will always be there for you no matter what. They are the people who will support you from day one. No matter what happens they will always be there to pick you up and love you.
3. Spend as much time with your loved ones as possible.
You never know when they are going to join God in heaven. At some point you may have to move away from them. It is so hard when you are no longer with them or when you don’t see those you love as much as you used to.
4. Be happy.
This is something that I personally have had a hard time with. Given some circumstances I have a hard time finding happiness in my life. I wish that I could be happy more than I am but I do my best to be as happy as possible.
5. Do not wish to grow up fast.
When we are kids all we want is to grow up, and now that I am growing up I don’t want to anymore. I miss my family more than anything. "Adulting" is not always fun. Having multiple jobs, being involved and being a full time student all at the same time is stressful. All I want is to have my mom take care of me.
6. Get an education.
Do your best when you are in high school. It will reflect on you for the rest of your life. If you do not do well in school before college it’ll make it just a little bit harder to get into a good university. Getting a good education means you have hard work ethic, the knowledge you need for an adult job and it will help you in the future.
7. People come and go.
This can be one of the hardest things to accept. The quote is, “if you love them set them free.” I have had so many friends walk out of my life. At the same end I have had to walk out of people’s lives. It is important for you to remember that God puts certain people in your life at a certain time and when they do what they need to do God may set the friendship free.
8. Make a best friend.
A best friend is someone who understands you better than anyone else. They are a person who you can cry to, talk about drama with and just be you. This person won’t judge you for your down falls. They are someone who will give you the best advice. And they will love you no matter what.
9. Don’t hold your emotions in.
I had been struggling for a really long time. However, I never let anyone know that I was struggling. This ate me up inside, it really affected me and drove me into depression. As soon as I finally let go of my emotions things got better for me.
10. Go to the lake.
Who doesn’t love a nice warm day on the water? I know I do. Going to the lake is one of my favorite childhood memories. The lake meant I got to relax and enjoy time with the most important people in my life. Whether it’s a lake or a river getting time in the sun is the best.
11. Have your grandparents tell you stories.
This has always been one of my favorite things to do. Our grandparents grew up in a completely different time than we did. I know my family are all part of immigrant families from Europe. They did not have much growing up. However, they still have some of the best stories to tell about growing up. You also get to learn about your family, which is awesome.
12. It is OK to make some mistakes.
I have made plenty of mistakes in my life. Some of those have had really bad consequences, but they were all learning experiences. Those mistakes have taught me valuable lessons. Some that will teach me not to make the same wrong decisions again. They will also help me in giving my kids and sister advice.
13. Always respect the people who are older than you.
It's common knowledge and will get you far in life. I have heard so many people my age talk back to teachers, their parents and others that are older than them. This is wrong. They have lived a whole lot more life than you. All they are doing is trying to help you out, don’t take that for granted.
14. Being single is OK.
I’m not going to lie, but this has been really hard for me to be OK with. I like having someone by my side to hold me when I’m crying and laugh with me when I am happy. Every relationship I’ve been in has taught me a good lesson. It has also showed me that when I am single I can work on the person I am.
15. Watch Netflix and sleep in.
Sometimes we have to take some time to relax and recharge. Our lives are so busy that sometimes we forget that it is important to unwind and do nothing. Plus, snuggling up in your sheets and sleeping in during the weekend is one of the best things ever.
16. I should have learned how to cook.
Growing up my mom tried to teach me how to cook but I refused to learn. I just figured that I would marry a guy who could cook, and I would be fine. The thing is I didn’t realize there was going to be a period of my life wear I would live on my own. Don’t be stuck eating fast food all the time; it's gross.
17. Love your family.
I mentioned family above, and I also know I said faith was most important. This is all true, however, family is the only thing that you will always have to hug you. I miss my family so much when I am gone at school. I am always wishing I could spend more time with them. No matter how many fights you get in, you need forgive your family as fast as possible.
18. Find a good hobby.
We get so tied up in everything we do so it is important to find a hobby that can take your mind off of everything. It needs to be something you love. Like exercising, painting, reading or building something. My hobby is something I love to do and it relaxes me.
19. Don’t be afraid to do something different.
We get so used to our everyday life, at times our days are just a repeat of the day before. Let’s face it that gets really boring and trying something new can add excitement into your life. Plus, you will have a great story.
20. Love yourself. Be confident in yourself. Be the best person you can be.
I put all of these on the same one because this is something you need to do for yourself. Success in your life comes from whether or not you are happy with what is going on in your life. Being confident in yourself and loving yourself will make everything that I listed above a whole lot easier to do. It is so important to be happy with your life.
