18 Notes to my 18 Year Old Self

Yesterday, Lauren Dubinksy started tweeting things to her 18 year old self. The topic now has it's own Twitter and all morning I've been watching Tweets and blog posts pop up all over the internet.

Since my brain has had a blogging dry spell this week - I felt like there are some things I'd also love to tell my 18 year old self.

1) You moved on from high school relatively quickly. Good for you.

2) Contrary to popular belief, small Christian Universities sole purpose is not to find you a man so you can get married and live happily ever after.

3) Go easy on the new friends you've made. You think you're "being a good witness"... but you're really just being judgmental.

4) Look in a mirror once in awhile, please for the love of God, look in a mirror. It's not shallow to want to look pretty.

5) Your faith is not superior to the other people on campus. Most everyone is just trying to figure it out - and so are you, even if you don't realize it yet.

6) Just because Willow Creek is big and has a food court in it, doesn't make it the epitome of what a church can be.

7) Remember the things you've loved your entire life? Don't forget about them. There's a reason you loved them in the first place, and there's a reason they come back. There really was no need to put them on the back burner.

8) Stop being such a drama queen.

9) Go to the mountains over spring break and soak in every moment.

10) Listen more than speak. You'll learn so much more and start thinking vs. spouting out what you've been told to think.

11) Everything isn't as complicated as you think it is. Friendships, relationships, faith...

12) There's no need to get into the church arguments. I know you know that's not what it's about, but I don't think you know that you know that it yet.

13) Loving people does not equal people pleasing and trying to fix them.

14) You don't have to be perfect.

15) People do love you and like you. It's okay to relax.

16) You know the cliche about God laughing at your plans... well... he does tend to change your plans. So just go with it.

17) Take a million pictures of the people you love.

18) Xanga is only the beginning of a beautiful relationship with the Internet. Just you wait.

A couple weeks after my 18th birthday with my friend Rocco - we were in the musical Children of Eden that summer.