If I can offer you one tip for the future, reading would be it. Read, read, read like there’s no tomorrow, books can offer you knowledge and adventure beyond what you can possibly imagine. It can expand your mind in ways you can’t even begin to count, if you’re not an avid reader, learn now, read because you can never go wrong with reading.

Step out of your comfort zone, live life! Discover new things! You gain nothing by staying in the dark corner of your world. There are things in life you need to try for yourself for you to understand. Create your own adventure, life experiences are gained when you take the first step.

Believe in something and stand up for it. Adopt a panda, save the eagles, clean the environment, join the Gay and Lesbian association, it doesn’t matter what but join a cause you believe in! In the long run, you’d realize that it doesn’t matter if you’re a bitch, a slut, a coward or whether you are rich, poor, ugly, weird, fat. People will likely remember the positive things you’ve done rather than the negative traits you have.

Remember that you don’t always need to change yourself for others, they only need to know that your good traits will always out-weight your bad ones.

Sing until you’re hoarse, laugh until you can’t breathe, cry until you’re spent and love until it lasts. Heartbreaks are common and something everyone has to go through at least one in their lifetime, while you can’t do anything about it, there will always be people around you who will be there whether you want them to be or not. They may not always give the best advice, they may not share your pain, they may not understand what you’re going through but sometimes, their presence alone is comfort enough.

Grow up a little, let go of all the hurt, disappointments and misunderstandings you’ve experienced in the past year. Revenge and spite will gain you nothing and might cost you everything. Don’t say things you don’t mean, don’t say something and mean another, don’t say you’re okay with it when you’re not. Learn to be yourself, let people know what kind of person you are even when they don’t know you well enough. Don’t pretend to be different than what you really are, it’s hard to accept someone who alternates from being nice and nasty all the time. Everyone’s entitled to their own opinions and biases but don’t put others down, never scoff at something that is important to another person.

Unless you are ready for the added responsibility or a master at the art of contraception/contraceptives, always keep your legs crossed.

The people you grew up with are probably the same people you are going to grow old with. They are the people who have seen you at your best, at your worst, at your lowest and highest. As you grow older, you’ll realize the importance of staying friends with the people who have known you since your childhood. They are probably the people who know your parents, your siblings, your enemies, your neighbor and everyone who entered your life at some point. You’ve probably bickered, had catfights, punched each other’s faces but you’ve also probably cried together, had sleepovers, discussed love and life and most importantly, spent more than half your lives with each other.

Write for yourself and nobody else, don’t worry about things that will not matter in the long run, wear decent clothes, eat good food, have medical check-ups, fangirl like there’s no tomorrow and believe in yourself.

But trust me on the reading.