In life there is a clock on everything. A clock on when things are “supposed” to happen. Each of us makes a plan, either consciously or subconsciously. We all have an idea of how our lives are supposed to go. The path we create to get us to the “big picture” consisting of all these things we feel we must accomplish before we run out of time. The reality of life is, plans are nothing and going off course is inevitable.

We’re being taught that we finish high school and jump right into college, whether we're good at school or not. Even if you didn’t care about high school, you’re still being expected to waste your money taking classes you’ll never care about. And when it takes you longer than everyone wanted to get through school, you’re the one that screwed up.

Maybe you had a child before you were married. Maybe you got married and you can’t have kids. Maybe all those dreams you had of a perfect family and a white picket fence got shattered within moments. Or you found out the choices you made when you were young are too damaging to come back from. Timing is never right. You can try and plan for these things and even those plans can fall through.

I’m a pragmatic person. I make lists for my lists. My life is planned to a T. I have this “ideal life plan” and it already hasn’t gone as I hoped it would. Why should I expect the rest of my life to go any differently? I shouldn’t. I can’t change the plan that’s already been set for me. I have to trust that there’s light at the end of my tunnel and that’s so much easier said than done.

I didn’t plan to be a rape victim. I didn’t plan for suicide attempts or guys that said “I love you” for all the wrong reasons. Graduating two years early was never my plan. College at 16- You guessed it, not in there either. You can’t plan for life but life has planned for you.

In the hardest ways possible I have had to realize that the world is a cruel place that takes your perfect plans and white picket fences and flips them upside down. Right now I’m planning to be done with law school by the time I’m 23, but I’m learning that plans change. Each one of us will realize one day that life has no plans in it. You just have to take it a day at a time and see where things go.

Did America plan to have Donald Trump as president? Did you plan to lose a loved one right before finals week? Did she plan to get life altering news at the doctor’s office this morning? NO.

I had planned a wedding for next year that I won’t be having. I had planned so many things for my future that will never happen now. I’m adapting to life and rolling with the punches. This is all we can do now.

So If you’re in your twenties and still pushing through college and have no clue what you’re doing- it’s okay. If you’re worried about never being able to have that perfect family, the way you wanted- it’s okay. If the person you thought was “the one” turned out not to be, even after you gave them everything- it’s okay. If you’re still struggling to get through tomorrow- it’s okay.

You can’t plan for this stuff.

Plans mean NOTHING. Live each day a moment at a time and appreciate every moment before the next change of plans crashes into you.

And never forget that YOU have a purpose, even if you no longer fit into the plans you once had made.