Hey, you,

I know life is a little crazy right now. You have no idea what you’re doing and you have no idea where you’re going. You’re about to start your junior year of college and you’re a little less excited than expected because you experienced the sophomore slump last year; you changed your mind quite a few times, you lost a few friends, you felt more lost and confused than you’d ever experienced, and last year was one of the most difficult years of your life.

As you’re preparing to take on upperclassmen status, your mind is racing a mile a minute with thoughts of how much you really don't want summer to end and how you’d rather travel the world and truly experience life than sit behind a desk with a book for multiple hours a day. I know life is confusing right now and I know you're nervous for this school year to begin, but it will be okay. As you continue to trek through this confusing, crazy, amazing life, remember this:

You are loved.

Your parents love you more than anything in this world. Your friends love you and wish nothing more than to see you happy. Your dog loves you, especially when you come home for a weekend. Your cats love you, especially when it's dinner time. God loves you because he created you. And you love yourself, even if you don't believe it from time to time.

It's OKAY to feel lost.

You're still in college; you're at an age where you don't need to have your life figured out, and anyone who says they have their life figured out is lying. It's okay to be confused and indecisive, because chances are most of the people in your life feel the same way. You might never 'find yourself,' but who cares? Just be you and do what makes you happy.

College might not be 'the best four years of your life,' but that doesn't mean you're doing anything wrong.

I know you've heard your whole life how amazing college would be and how you would find yourself and find your people, but that's just not the case with you and it's OKAY. You're not weird or anything, you just don't like college, and there's nothing wrong with that. Just because college isn't the greatest time of your life doesn't mean that you're headed down a dark path; it just means that the best years are yet to come.

Don't be too hard on yourself.

You're at a point in your life where you're starting to make your own decisions - big decisions. You're going to mess up and you're going to make more than a few mistakes, but EVERYONE DOES. It's okay! If you don't make any mistakes then you're not taking risks and you're not challenging yourself, and if you're not doing that then you're not really living. Go ahead, make mistakes and change your mind; you're young and you need to have fun and not take life so seriously.

Live your life unapologetically.

Do what you want. Make your own decisions. Stop saying sorry every time you mess up. Stop being afraid. Go on adventures. Do something that scares the crap out of you. Life is short, but it's also long; do what makes you happy because you only have one life; make it count.

Don't ever give up.

They never said life was going to be easy, they said it was going to be worth it. You're still young, so you're going to make a few more mistakes, you're going to lose more friends than you'd like, and you're probably going to change your mind. You're going to feel lost and you might never find your people, but it's okay. You're going to be okay.

Junior year is coming whether you like it or not, so stop feeling sad and stop feeling sorry for yourself. Look around; there are SO many people that love you and want nothing more than to see you happy, and you deserve to be happy. It might rain on your parade from time to time, but the sun will come out eventually.