1. The friends you start out with freshman year, more than likely won’t finish senior year with you.

As soon as we start high school, of course we want nothing more than to fit in, am I right? Well, freshman year is when you start to grow apart from the people you thought would be by your side forever. It’s ok to grow apart from people, it happens all the time. I’m gonna be honest with you, if you’re not growing apart from people, you’re not growing up. I learned very quickly during my four years of high school that it’s all about growing up and accepting what you can not change.

2. It is ok to not be ok.

Let’s be honest with each other for a second, there will always be a time at some point in your life that you just feel overwhelmed because you got a bad grade, your boyfriend/girlfriend broke up with you, or maybe you got into a fight with your best friend, or even maybe something else that’s worse than those three things. Whatever it is, it is ok to be upset about it. You’re not a lesser person because you need time to process the things that are happening in your life. Never let anyone make you feel small for feeling. It is perfectly ok to not be ok.

3. Be careful who you trust.

I learned the hard way that not everyone you meet is going to be 100% down for you. You have to make sure you take care of yourself before you put yourself out there to take care of others. With that being said, the only way you can know to trust someone is to take a risk and trust them. So I guess what I'm saying is trust yourself enough to know who is going to help you grow. At the end of the day, life is about who you want to be, so make sure you have a positive support system. Everyone who walks into your life is not meant to stay, and that is ok.

4. You are not a number.

Do not let your grades define you, you are not the last grade you got on your math test, you are not a failure because you didn't do as well as you wanted to on your science exam. Too many times in high school, I have seen really amazing people define themselves by their grades, and even their weights. Now, don't get me wrong grades are important, but they do not define who you are as a person. There is way more to life than getting all A's in high school, it took me a long time to realize that. You are your favorite songs, or your favorite color, what you do when you're bored, when you're sad, happy, and even angry. Most of all, you are defined by how you treat other people, why? Eventually, everyone will forget the things you did and said, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

5. Do not be afraid to let go.

I think it is fair to say that none of us really like pain. But let me ask you this, does it hurt more to let go of something that is toxic to you? or does it hurt more to hold onto what's toxic to you? Speaking from experience I would say that holding on does more damage then letting go, even though they both can be painful, however high school has never taught one extrenely important thing and that is how to love ourselves. You have to make the decision to love yourself enough to let go of something or someone that no longer serves you. Letting go hurts, but not every new beginning is meant to last forever, and especially in high school, not everyone you meet is meant to stay.