When you're 13, you feel like you have your whole life ahead of you. Not even in high school yet, you fathom what it's like (and if it's really like "Degrassi"). Once you enter high school, it feels like it will never end. However, a lifetime seems to pass in only four years. Before you know it, you are 18, walking across the stage at graduation, having a hard time believing you are actually the same person you were when you first walked through the front doors as a nervous, excited and innocent freshmen four years prior. In many ways, you're not the same person, having grown from child to adult.
The summer going into college is usually one of the most exciting; as you pack your belongings, you try to hang out with friends as much as possible. Everyone knows change in friendships is inevitable when college starts. Even if you and your friends commute to school, it's hard to make time to see them, because everyone's schedules are different now.
Then, somehow, the age of 19 creeps up on you. How it happens, no one knows. 19 is basically 20, because by the age of 19 you are already living independently and (usually) act like an adult.
So, I just want to say thank you to the ages of 13 to 18, the crucial period that formed who I am and gave me so many fond memories. Freshman year of high school, having my first boyfriend. Sophomore year of high school, being in my first Advanced Placement class (and actually passing the exam in May, despite doing awful throughout the year). Junior year, taking the SAT and ACT and finally feeling a little older. And the final countdown...senior year, coasting through my classes, barely remembering the days that I actually had homework. And, of course, the frosting on the high school cake...prom.
To anyone currently an age between 13 and 18, I just want you to rejoice in it. Make sure to you create memories your future children will love to hear. Do anything and everything you can, because reality hits you like a truck faster than you expect. The carefree teenage years do not last forever, contrary to what you might think. I think I took my younger years for granted. However, throughout the hours of complaining about things that are now irrelevant, the little moments I shared with friends, family, peers, and even my teachers is what I actually remember and get nostalgic about. The memories I hold near and dear to my heart happened throughout the ages of 13 and 18. It turns out my dad was right all along; I shouldn't have wished time away like I always did.
And finally, to my 19th year on this planet: please don't let me turn this year into a 365 day countdown until I'm 20. Please make sure I do not stress about the future. Just let life happen. I know I'm ready.
