There are countless things I wish I could change, re-do, fix, but obviously, that is not possible. As I entered this new chapter of my life, starting college, living on my own, I realized how many things I wish I would've known or been told. So this article goes out to you all:
It does not matter what the 'popular' people think of you: they will not matter in a few years. I was always concerned of what others thought of me, if everyone liked me, if I looked the right way, if boys thought I was pretty. Let me tell you something, none of that matters. Being the nerdy high school girl and transforming into an independent driven woman was one thing I never saw coming, but I wouldn't change who I am or who I was for anything. Don't let your past define you, but never forget where you came from.
It is okay to not know what you want to do with your life. I obsessed about picking the correct university, the major where I would be most successful, what degree would give me the highest salary. Do what makes you happy. You don't want to wake up in the morning dreading attending a class for your major you despise, you don't want to wake up 10 years from now dreading your job. Find what makes you happy, and make your dreams a reality.
Friends will come and go, but the important ones stay. As you grow up and move away from your friends, you will lose touch with some people, and that's okay. You will meet new people who you'll grow to love, and they will become some of the greatest friends you've ever had. Even though you'll have countless new friends, one thing I've learned is that your lifelong friends will always be just a phone call away, no matter what. Cherish them while you have them close to you, because you'll never know how much you love them until they're thousands of miles away.
Carpe Diem. Eat the cookie while you're young and your metabolism can handle it. Stay up talking about boys and dances and laughing until the early hours of the morning. Give your Mom a hug just because. Appreciate the little things in life, because before you know it, they'll become the big things.
Step out of your comfort zone. Join a sorority, play on an intramural volleyball team, sing karaoke in front of a thousand people, become a better, and happier, version of yourself. Life's too short to play it safe. It only takes 20 seconds of insane courage for something incredible to happen.
Smile more, complain less. Call, don't text. Listen, don't speak. Enjoy every second, and regret nothing, because all the little things add up to make you the person you are, and the person you'll become.
