I will never forget the feeling; standing in the Sears Center Arena, waiting to be handed my diploma, making me an official high school graduate. For months, my friends and I had talked about nothing but our plans for college. Who we were rooming with, how we were going to decorate our dorms, and most of all, how excited we were to finally be free from our parents. As I walked onto the stage and received that coveted piece of paper, I felt the eyes of my family as they watched, even though I could not see them. And as my father hugged me with tears in his eyes, it all finally hit me. One chapter had ended, and a new one was about to begin. And as some of you are reading this, you will have either experienced this feeling already, or you are about to. And I'm here to tell you... it's going to be OK.

I know that you feel like everything is flying at you, and you're just trying not to catch a reality check to the throat. You just need to remember a very important thing, live for what is going on right now. Think of it as if you were taking a long road trip through the country. If you focus on what happened in high school, you won't be able to enjoy the view you have right now. And if you try to look too far ahead, you'll miss all the amazing things going on around you. I know the past can be regrettable and the future seems so bright and exciting, but you can't let yourself be blinded by it. You need to lean back in your seat, turn some Panic! At The Disco on, and enjoy the ride. Because in a matter of weeks, the people you call your friends will be moving all around the country, studying different majors, some pursuing military careers, all meeting new people and sharing new experiences with them. Enjoy the time you have now.

Go on that road trip with your friends.

Ask that guy/girl out.

Take a risk.

Make mistakes.

Laugh more than you cry.

Make the memories that you see in the movies, and stop waiting for the storybook tales to happen, make them happen. But through all the good memories, all the nights you won't remember, all the people who make you laugh and cry in the same conversation, there are you parents. And they're the ones who will smile as they see you've posted those memories on Instagram, the ones who will be more excited than you to shop for your college dorms. And they'll start an investigation to rival Sherlock Holmes to make sure your roommate is a good person. And when you're sitting in your dorm room for the first time alone, just remember that they'll spend the car ride home crying. Happy that you're following your dreams, but sad that you have to leave to achieve those dreams.

Don't forget the people who truly matter, because, through all the arguments, they'll be your biggest cheerleaders.