10 Things I Needed To Know Growing Up

i.
You are beautiful, do not let the childish insults and barbs convince you otherwise. They cannot make you feel inferior without your permission. Do not give them permission. You are a person and just because you do not look like the girls on the magazines does not mean you’re any less of a person.
ii.
You will tell yourself “It’s only one cut” and you will think you can handle it. You cannot. Tell your father about cement that fills your bones and weighs you down. Tell him about the nights you’ve stayed up crying until you cannot breathe. Tell him about the screaming in your head and the times you felt like locking yourself in the bathroom and shredding your legs and arms open. You cannot handle this on your own. It is too much.
iii.
You are going to get your heart broken,and you are going to need a safety net to fall back on. Do not abandon your friends. You will need them when the pretty girl with the ocean eyes tells you she doesn’t love you anymore. You will need them when the person you thought you loved told you the most beautiful lies and marked up your neck before tossing you aside. You will need them when you are so crazy for the beautiful girl with eyes as dark as the rocks ships shatter against in a storm and you are scared that you will end up hurt again.
iv.
Just because you get your heart broken, that does not mean that everyone is going to hurt you. Trust her when she tells you she thinks you are beautiful. It is okay to tear down your walls and let someone in. It is okay to be vulnerable.
v.
Step outside of your comfort zone and do something daring. Try out for a play, tell the pretty girl in your algebra class how you feel, dye your hair. You will regret not taking those chances when you had them. Sometimes it works out in your favor
vi.
If you take a risk, and it does not go as planned, that does not mean it was a mistake.
vii.
You are made up of stardust. You are a nebula, you are a supernova, you have galaxies in you. Do not let them go to waste. You must believe in yourself. You must believe that you can conquer every mountain, every valley, every expanse of ocean. You must have faith that you will not complete this journey on your own. Even when you think you are alone, look up at the night sky and know that the Man in the Moon is there, guiding you to the next part of your journey.

viii.
Do not listen to the nasty voices in your head. They will whisper the most toxic of lies in your ears. They will poison your mind and make you doubt yourself. Live without doubt. Plans will go awry, choices will reveal themselves to be mistakes, but that is the experience of living. You must live without regret, without doubt, without hesitation. Do not end up trapped in the past. Do not listen to the voices in your head my dear. I promise you all they spew are fallacies.
ix.
Find joy in small things. The way the leaves change color, complementing the quiet girl when she looks like she needs it, drinking a warm cup of tea. Happiness will not always be found in something major. You cannot rely on others for happiness. You will fight with the one who makes you smile. You will bicker with the one who has been by your side through thick and thin. If you rely on others, you will end up more unhappy than you were before.
x.
You are not selfish or vain for loving yourself. Take 10 minutes out of your day to stand in the mirror and find things you like about yourself. It will be so very hard at first, but the more you do it, the easier it becomes. Learn to adore yourself. You only get one body, do not waste your time hating it.