You are not worthless. The drugs, the pills, the blades, the alcohol, the thoughts in your head telling you that you're worthless, that's what's worthless. You are by far not worthless. You are worth so much more than you can imagine. Put down the worthless things and start realizing how much worth you have.

Your presence affects more than just yourself. Your presence affects your family, your friends, you teachers, your classmates, your neighbor's, etc. I'm sure I'm not the only person who is so tired of hearing the news of another person taken too soon.

Whenever you pick up that needle, whenever you pick up that blade, that handful of pills, that bottle of tequila, whenever you tell yourself that you're presence doesn't make a difference, you are putting your life in the hands of something WORTHLESS. Stop doing that. Stop giving heroin control over you. Stop giving alcohol control over you. Stop giving narcotics control over you. Stop telling yourself that you're nothing, because in reality, you're everything to somebody.

Once you're in recovery from a substance, you're always in recovery. You always have to stay on your feet and fight relapse. Don't go towards anything or anybody that will increase your chances of relapsing. Look out for yourself. Take the time to heal and stay away from those who won't help you. It's not selfish to take care of yourself, because you do matter, and you are worth it. Recovery is not easy. Addiction is not easy. However, you have a choice to stick around the people you know won't help you. You have a choice to fight the disease that is addiction. I hope you make the choice to fight for your life rather than throwing it away.

Too many people are taken too young. This world cannot keep losing young adults to overdoses or suicides. Drugs are not a joke. Guns are not a joke. Blades are not a joke. Heroin is not a joke. Meth is not a joke. Opioids are not a joke. Suicidal thoughts are not a joke. Pills are not a joke. Your life is not a joke, so don't treat it like one. Stop treating these things like a passing of time and a hobby and start treating yourself like you matter.

One of my high school teachers took a very important lesson out of Tuesdays With Morrie. It was a lesson I'll never forget. This lesson was that "Death ends a life, not a relationship". If someone is taken too soon, don't let that end the relationship that you had with that person. They can still be a part of your story. They can still matter.

Take care of yourself and others.

Pray for the world.