Tomorrow will be a kind of special day for me since tomorrow I’ll celebrate my 18th birthday. 18 is not a birthday like any other or at least not like any of the birthdays I had before. There will be something different from this day on. I know a lot of people are excited for their 18th birthday and cannot wait to finally become an “adult”. I’m excited too but I also know that with adult life comes a lot of responsibility. But before I cross the line to this new chapter in my life I think now is a good time to take a first look back on life so far. What have I learned or experienced? Well here’s a list of 18 things I learned during the 18 years I’m here on earth:
#1 Life is not supposed to be fair.
#2 Having trust in yourself is a big part of being successful.
#3 People seem to like complaining about politics but most of them don’t actually try to change something themselves.
#4 Being polite seems to get out of fashion but I think it is something that makes our lifes easier.
#5 Before you do something ask yourself two questions: Will I possibly regret doing this 30 years from now? Will I possibly regret not doing this 30 years from now? If the answer to the first question is yes don’t do it. If the answer to the second question is yes do it.
#6 It is better to have a few real friends than a lot of fake friends.
#7 Find a role model. Both someone who maybe is already dead or too famous for you to contact (in my case John Green) and someone close to you who can guide you personally (in other words a mentor).
#8 People who are older than you aren’t necessarily always right but they do have more experience with life since they are longer here than you.
#9 Knowing the right people will always benefit you.
#10 If you can be nice.
#11 On the other hand there are also people who don’t deserve you being nice to them. Keep away from those people instead of fighting or arguing with them. The time you’d spend being miserable with them could be spent doing something awesome.
#12 Have principles. Things you won’t step away from.
#13 Try something new from time to time.
#14 The best way to keep a secret is not to tell anyone. The second best way is if it really has to be to tell one other person whom you can trust completely. There is not third best way. (Yes this is from NCIS. Maybe I should write a post about my favorite sitcoms one day…)
#15 It will bring you far in life when you’re known as being trustworthy (for example when you need a favor from a teacher in school like one or two extra points they will rather give them to you if you always did what they asked you to do. If you still don’t get the favor don’t get rude and accept it. They will remember that too.)
#16 Flaws are not always something you should get rid of. They shape your personality too. Just don’t let them get out of hand.
#17 Just because some members of a group behave like d*cks it doesn’t mean that the hole group consists of d*cks. This applies to every religion as well as for vegans or feminists. Unfortunately most of the world doesn’t seem to think this way and judges a hole group based on the actions of a few idiots (Best example would be to think that all muslims are terrorists just because a small amount of them are too stupid to read the Koran the right way). Why can’t we just respect each other and stop this nonsense? (I know it seems like I forgot #1…)
#18 Always look on the bright side of life
So far I’m pretty happy with my life. I look back with mostly pride and yes some regrets (but then again, too few to mention… Ah I just love this song by Sinatra… But you already know that since you read my Top 10 Songs, right?). But I look forward to it getting even better in the upcoming years. However there is one thing that I realised while thinking about this list: What I really want to make let’s say the “theme” of my 18th birthday is gratefulness. I am grateful for the life that I am allowed to live. I am grateful for the knowledge that I was allowed and still am allowed to receive in school from my teachers but also from my parents and other persons that inspire me. I am grateful for every act of kindness I received in these 18 years. I am grateful for the amazing people that I humbly call my friends. My friends from whom I also learned so much already. My friends with whom I had so much fun. My friends who give this life of mine its colour. Thank you here at this point of life for these amazing years and I already look eagerly forward to the upcoming years…
For now I leave you with these thoughts and I hope you’ll have an awesome week!
just thoughts 