To the class of 2020,

Where to begin? Frankly, I am not quite sure where to begin because I never endured such a dramatic, screeching halt to a period of life that I could confidently say would last until a specific date in May. I'll start here with an inkling of wisdom from my high school football coach: "focus on the things you can control and waste no time worrying about the rest." As simple as it sounds, not a single person by being anxious and worrying can "add a single hour to his or her span of life" (Luke 12:25, ESV). This mantra was applicable to football because the game is so rapidly changing and consists of numerous unknowns. Likewise, but in a magnified manner, life for all people, but especially graduating seniors, just radically changed in the blink of an eye. Control what you can… your faith, work ethic, and attitude, amongst other things, and waste no time worrying about the unknown.

You had it all planned out… you would spend your spring break at your favorite vacation spot or at practice; you would catch "senioritis" and enjoy the gradually regressing workload at school; you would make lifelong memories with your teammates competing on the field, the course, the court, the track, or in academic competition; you would go out on top crowned a champion; you would suffer through one more seemingly never ending ACT or SAT; you would enjoy your last prom or celebratory dance; you would cherish the last moments with your family; you would decide on where to attend college or on what the next step of your life might be; you would walk the stage with your clique; you would, sometimes dreadingly and other times excitedly, write thank you cards to your support group; you would spend these last months living lavishly just as the classes before you did. You would. BUT you didn't. Eighteen years of anticipation shattered in a matter of hours. Like a vapor your plans were in front of you one second and vanished the next. How unfair?!

Welcome to life. This is most certainly a defining, fork-in-the-road moment, but how are you going to let it define you? On one hand you could dwell in the onslaught of negatives and wallow in search of consolation, yet on the other hand you could consider this series of events an opportunity… a preface to the seemingly lengthy but realistically brief novel known as life. Welcome to adjusting on the fly, to embracing the word "flexibility," and to living life with a future that's merely a rough draft because you now know that the eraser, the curly fry-resembling deletion symbol, and the margins of your paper will all be utilized more than once. Being only a year removed from my senior year, my life isn't exactly chock-full of these winding roads and dramatic obstacles, but I can tell you that the learning curve will steepen rather quickly. Just consider these events a jump-start on the rest of your life. Take full advantage of this time in learning how to properly and boldly manage conflict instead of running from it.

As my first complete (¾ complete?) year outside of high school draws to an end, I decided to rewind a little bit and tell of some knowledge I garnered via experimentation. I remember seeking out every ounce of advice and help from older people that I could find during my last few months prior to leaving for college. I understand that some people will not attend college next year, which is completely okay. Even if you don't fall into that category, the following tips should assist you in whatever the next step of your journey might be. For those who are searching for any amount of information to quell your fears about the future, here are a few things of the things that I learned within a month of leaving home:

Whoever may be reading this, I wish you the best moving forward. If you're still alive and breathing then you still have a purpose on this earth. How exciting is that?! Go live this life to its fullest while the opportunity presents itself!