I wish I could take credit for writing this out myself, but I didn’t.
Keep it close though.
If I Only Knew
Growing up, I had to fend for myself.
As an only child, I made decisions based on my own assumptions. I didn’t have older siblings to probe for insight or advice and I relied on my friends to influence my decisions.
I didn’t know any better and I sometimes made poor choices. My choices lacked clarity and judgement, and I may have found myself in some unfortunately sticky situations. Such is life though and I can promise you that I learned (valuable) lessons from (most of) my mistakes.
If I could go back and help myself and offer some words of wisdom to the younger, naive version of me, this is what I would say:
1: Don’t rush. Life is not a race! – Slow it down, take a breath, and do things at your own pace. This way, you’ll enjoy every thing that much more and be less likely to have any hints of regret later on.
2. Don’t do things in an attempt to be “cool”. – Chances are, you’ll seem less cool for doing so. If your heart ain’t into it, then forget it. Stand up for your individual decisions. People will actually respect you more for doing so.
3. Eat breakfast!! Pack a lunch & some snacks while you’re at it too! – Stop wasting so much money at the sandwich joint or the candy store. Stop acting like you actually enjoy that so-called ‘food’ from the cafeteria and feed your body something nutritious for once.
4. Save your hard earned money. – You worked hard for that money, so why not save it for something special? No one’s really going to care about your $50 Roxy t-shirt and $120 Mavi jeans with no pockets. Seriously.
5. Respect yourself. – Don’t let people treat you any less than you deserve. Don’t tolerate it if there’s no good reason for their torture. You don’t need people like that in your life; you are better than that.
6. BOYS are a waste of time. – Something better will come along. Don’t waste your heart and your time on a silly, immature boy who can’t treat you like you should be treated. Wait, for a MAN.
7. Take important things seriously. – Keep your grades up, pay attention. Don’t take things for granted. See the importance in the things you don’t think matter…
8. Don’t look for the easy way out. – Stop slacking and suck it up. Put in the hard work, and you’ll be more pleased with the outcomes.
9. You WILL get hurt. – It’s unstoppable, but it won’t be the end of the world. Just take every thing with one small step at a time. Don’t let someone else or something you can’t control stop you from being happy.
I’m glad I made the decisions I did, I have no regrets. They’ve made me into who I am and they’ve shaped my current values, beliefs, and demeanour. But it definitely wouldn’t have hurt at all, to know what I know now – back then.
🙂
Let Me, Give Thanks.
Thanksgiving.
One of the simplest, uncluttered holidays of the year. No gifts, no unnecessary greeting cards, nothing superficial. Just family and love. It’s easy.
I’m thankful for many things in my life, but this year, I’m especially thankful for two things: People and Opportunity.
I’m thankful for the people who have believed in me. The people who have given me a chance to be myself and share my life with them. The people who have opened their arms to me and welcomed me to be a part of their own life. The people who have joined me in my adventures and helped create them. And mostly the people who have always supported me, loved me, and encouraged me to be my best.
Throughout 8 years of friendship, I’ve had the privilege of finding my soul-mate in my best friend; a woman I trust with my entire world and respect with my whole heart. She’s my better half, my kick-in-the-pants, and my partner in crime.
In my travels between BC and Alberta, I found friends in the most amazing people. I’ve fallen in lust, created friendships that will last a lifetime, and I’ve met some of the most interesting people I’ve ever known. I found a forever friend in someone twice my age, a mentor and good friend in a woman who’s respected by many, and I’ve created great bonds with many people who I would have never met without the decisions I made to relocate myself.
People I’ve always known, new faces, and even random strangers have wiggled their way into my heart and found a special spot. I’m okay with this and I hope those certain people stay there; my heart will continue to grow as I hopefully meet more people who exude pure awesome-ness.
The people I am the most thankful for: my family. Through good, bad, tears and every smile – they’re always there, no questions asked. I love them, for loving me unconditionally. They don’t judge me and they stand behind me with encouragement as I continue to try new things and find the best ways to live my life. I’m far from perfect, but that doesn’t matter to them.
Over the past (almost) two years, I’ve been blessed with incredible opportunities to leave an impact on this world. I’m lucky enough to have a job that allows to me to write every day and be myself. I’m so grateful to have found ways to fuel my passion for writing; I’m so happy that I get to share it with the world. Through my previous blog, my work in radio copywriting, and my freelance work for The Province blog page – I have a chance to write what I want. I get to express myself and people actually read my work. (THAT is SO cool! I’m still in awe over that, all the freakin’ time!)
The other day, I had a chance to hang out with the graduating class of the Broadcast Communications Radio program at BCIT. It was an extreme honour to be able to share my story and my insight on life after graduation and my experience in the industry. When I stop and think to myself that I only graduated a year ago, I’m totally shocked that they see me as someone worthy of offering advice. It was such a flattering experience and really opened my eyes as to how incredibly fortunate I am in my small successes thus far.
I’m thankful for so much in this life, but it’s the people and the life I’ve had the opportunity to enjoy in the past 19 months that has made me truly grateful to be… me.
Life isn’t perfect; it’s never going to be. So look at what you have, see the awesome in it and keep doing YOU.
Be thankful for what you’ve got, right now. Big or small – it’s gotta’ be something to smile about.