High school. Those were the simple times where our worries were small, and our social lives were large. It was a time in our lives where we could scrape by with little to no work and still do well. Those were the days… or so we thought. In high school, we thought life was so rough. We would wake up early and go to school until 2:30 PM. Then, we would go to work for a couples times a week. We didn’t really have anything major to worry about.

As I sit here, on a Sunday night, I wish I wouldn’t have wished away high school. To be honest, as I am looking back now, I just see what a joke it really was. High school was nothing like the world I live in today. I remember how I spent my teenage years thinking about college and just how fun it will be. Now, I spend my time thinking about how I wish I were out of college already, so I can be married and own lots of dogs.

My issue isn’t that I think about the future, but I’m not actually enjoying what I have right now. I am living a great life, but my future is taking over my thoughts. If I spend all of the time wishing away my 20’s, I will regret it when I hit my 30’s and 40’s.

My point is that we spend so much time wishing things were different, and easier that we so often forget hat is right in front of us. The life we are living right now is what predicts our futures, not our mental pictures of what we think it should look like.

So to the high schoolers, don’t waste your time wishing you were in college. Just stop. Soak up every moment of high school, because those were some of my favorite nights. High school is a much simpler time; so enjoy it while you still can.

So to the college students, don’t waste your time either. I know it’s easy to get wrapped up in the latest baby and engagement pictures on Instagram and Facebook, but don’t fall in to the trap. Focus on you. Focus on your life and your reckless college years while you still can. One day you too will look back and wish you hadn’t rushed through it to get to your future.

Overall, take the time to soak up and really enjoy the life you are living in this moment. The future is waiting for you, but it wont be as memorable if you spend your time chasing through life for it.