I've been on this earth for 19 years. Nineteen short years. I may not know a lot. In fact to some, I may know nothing, but in my opinion, I know a little. Since I think I know a little bit, here's a list of 19 things I've learned in my 19 short years.
Little ones will look up to you
That journey started for me when I was little myself. My sister who's two years younger than me mimicked EVERYTHING I did. It bit her in the butt sometimes, oops. Now I have little ones who watch my every move and will do the exact same things I do. To things as little as fake coughing.
You will be bullied, but how you choose to react to it is really what matters.
In reality, you're probably so much more than the bully is choosing to be and they're taking their insecurities out on you. Don't let it affect how you see yourself. You're incredible my dear.
Heartbreak is real, and boy does it hurt.
You may think you'll never recover, but I promise you will. Someone better is out there just waiting to heal that broken heart. Be patient.
High school isn't everything.
For those who love it, be prepared for when it ends. For those who hate it, I promise it does end. Keep pushing through until it does.
Parents are everything and more.
Listen to them. I know you hate what they have to say most of the time, but the reality of it is, they usually know more than we do.
Mistakes happen.
Just because someone else's mistake seems larger than yours doesn't mean it's worse. Quit judging others mistakes and focus on fixing your own.
Cars do kill.
I don't care if you're Superman, vehicles are not safety nets. Wear your seatbelt. Drive carefully. Pay attention to the road. It could save your life.
Words really do hurt.
I know the saying is "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." Yea that's a straight line. They hurt. Sometimes more than the sticks and stones. Be careful what you say to people.
People leave.
No matter how bad you want them to stay, people will leave and it will sting. Some have good reasons. Others have no reasons. Either way, they will leave, and you just have to learn how to cope.
Depression is a real disease.
I think people underestimate the power of depression unless they've dealt with it. It causes unwanted thoughts. Scary thoughts. No one deserves to go through this, but people do every day. Help the ones you know you can.
People grow apart.
I don't care if you promised each other you'd be together for forever, or the friendship will never go away. Life happens. Things get in the way. People change. It doesn't always have to be a big ordeal, but you will grow apart from people you thought you never would.
Your sister (or brother in other cases different than mine) can become your ride or die quicker than anything.
Savannah Wallace
When I was younger I refused to believe I could be close to her, we fought way too much. Here I am biting my tongue though, with her by my side through it all.
People hide what they go through.
You never know everything someone is going through, be kind. I know not everyone is fun to be around, but ask them if they're ok, they may be struggling with something you don't know about.
Cherish EVERY moment with your loved ones.
Whether death creeps up on them, or they join the military (as in my case #semperfi), there are times that you will lose them and it's hard. Enjoy all the one you possibly can with them, because you will deeply regret it if you don't.
Have fun.
Don't be so serious. Don't work yourself to death. Life was made to enjoy, so quit overdoing it, and just live!
You will get embarrassed.
That's ok though. Bounce back and laugh at yourself, because it's going to happen to everyone at least once. Embarrassment is a VERY common thing. Don't make the worst of it when it happens though, and definitely don't dwell on it.
College might be the death of you.
Ok just kidding, but for real, all that procrastinating you did in high school probably won't work now. If it does, I envy you. I quickly learned the hard way that I most definitely couldn't procrastinate anymore. Whoops.
IT'S OK TO HAVE EMOTIONS.
I'm absolutely horrible at showing my emotions. I'll choke down any type of emotion that's coming my way if I'm in front of anyone, but when my boyfriend decided he wanted to be a Marine (which I gladly support), it felt like someone just threw a brick at my chest. I've yet to cry about it, but it's affected a lot of other emotions by doing that. I've learned that my emotions don't have to be covered all the time. It's ok to be vulnerable sometimes.
Life will throw you down so hard sometimes, but you've just gotta jump back up.
From my experiences in life, it's not always easy, and it's really not always fun. I've been broken and hurt, but I've also been overjoyed and excited. It only works if you have both to even each other out. You'll get through it, I promise.
