Somehow our generation has this preconceived notion that the way to make it through this life is to stay heartless and emotionless. We swallow our emotions like they are acid on our tongues. We don’t speak up. We don’t cry. We don’t feel things. We are taught how to numb ourselves just to escape our thoughts. We try to protect ourselves from heart break by distancing ourselves from any form of human emotion. No one can hurt us if they can’t get close enough, but what we don’t realize is that no one can make us happy either.

By trying to protect ourselves, we are ruining ourselves, and we are are ruining any great opportunities we have to make real connections. We are not teaching ourselves how to be independent, but how to be lonely. We only pretend to be happy. We have become a generation of self medication and self destruction. We think we are protecting ourselves, but we are really just hurting ourselves more. What these people who preach coldheartedness don’t tell you is that some of the best moments in your life come from being open and honest with yourself and with the people around you. Raw human emotion, raw human connection, these are the things that you will thrive off of someday.

So do it. Feel things, big things. Get close to people. Open up to people. When it’s 2 o’clock in the morning and he asks about your past love, tell him. Laugh your obnoxious laugh in a room full of crowded people without fear of being judged. Stop wondering what you two are and ask him. Allow yourself to fall madly in love with someone who isn’t right for you. Sure it will suck when it’s over, but maybe the next time you’ll fall madly in love with someone who IS right for you. When he asks how you feel about him, don’t sugar coat it, don’t wait to hear his response first, tell him how his smile drives you crazy and you can’t stop thinking about him. Don’t do it for him, but do it for you. Do it because you owe yourself the chance to have something great, do it because you don’t have time to waste on people who don’t feel the same. I know you’re scared. I know everyone you have opened up to in the past has let you down, but maybe this one time will be different, and if not keep trying and wishing for that one time. Don't make this all about love. When your best friend mindlessly says something that hurts you, don’t just pretend it didn’t bother you. Stop saying 'it's okay' when it's not. Get used to saying 'hey I don’t like when you do this', or 'I really like when you do that'. Stop biting your tongue when you want to speak u. Too many people are stuck in the same situation because they're scared to break the silence, don’t be that person. Don’t let the fear of rejection turn you into any less of a human being. Because that’s what you are, human, and you fall and you scream and you feel a whole lot of things, and that my friend is perfectly okay.