I can't believe I'm 20. I've already lived two decades on this earth. Although it may sound kind of morbid, this is around the age where you start realizing your inevitable mortality. All throughout your teenage years, you're in this immature mindset of "I'm invincible"; but as you start getting slightly older, it really starts to hit you how limited your time on this earth is. Of course I flip this idea around and view this concept in a positive way, by deciding to live each day to its highest potential!

Recently I got to thinking about how badly I wanted to grow up for as long as I could remember. Ever since I was in elementary school, I always wanted to be in middle school. In middle school, I wanted to be in high school. Then in high school, I wanted to be in college. I'm in college; so what now? Now I wish I hadn't grown up so fast. Don't get me wrong, I'm still only 20 and I love being this age, but I also wish I hadn't tried to rush through my childhood and teenage years. You have your whole life to grow up, but you only get to be a kid for so long. You have very little responsibilities, nothing to worry about, more room for mistakes, and so many other perks that come with being a child! Now I'm a junior in college, and it's staring to hit me that I have one more year until graduation and I'll be out in the real world; a functioning member of society.

I realized that college is the bridge from the small world I knew in high school to the real world full of possibilities waiting for me. If I went straight from high school straight into the working world, I'd feel as through I was pushed into the deep end of the pool. However, going from the fairly rigid structure of high school, to the more fluid environment of college, and finally the unpredictable atmosphere of the real world is much easier.

Now looking back at my childhood, I reminisce on the nostalgic vibes it brings me. I think of those summers that never seemed to end; swimming in the pool, playing tag with friends, going to the outdoor film festivals, the smell of freshly cut grass, the feeling of sweat streaming down my face after hours of playing outside and everything else that reminds me of summer. I even miss my school life. Packing a small lunch to take with me, finding new friends, freaking out when I forgot to do my homework. Not to mention weekends! Getting up early on Saturday mornings and sunning downstairs to watch Cartoon Network, Disney Challenge, and Nickelodeon was what I most looked forward to. "Dexter's Lab", anyone? I realize once those stages pass, they never return. So I've taken the lessons I've learned and now savor every possible minute of my life, because I feel it won't be long before I'm 40 and think back to when I was 20 and wished I has slowed down and enjoyed my life more!