teenagers

A day in the life of a teenage girl.  I was a teenager once.  Oh, the awkward middle school years.  Back Street Boys, spin the bottle, 7 minutes in heaven, and all kinds of excuses to socialize and explore the world.  I think when I was a teenager I was a "mikro-megalo," which is what the greeks call someone who thinks they are older or more mature than they are.  I always thought I knew exactly how things should be. Not that I was a know-it-all, but I was definitely naive.  Not to mention the raging hormones.  Now, looking back, I have to admit that even though I was always trying to make the right decisions, I didn't. Then it occurs to me that I am in exactly the same position now as I was then.  I'm definitely still super hormonal, and I always try to be fair and honest and do the right thing, but my vision is still limited.  I have to acknowledge my own ignorance, and remember that I will never know everything.  I didn't then, I don't now, and I never will.  I'm going to make mistakes.  Things will never be perfect.  But as long as I remember that nothing is the end of the world, and I learn from those mistakes, then every mistake is a constructive building block.  Was it Plato who said that the wisest thing is to admit you aren't wise?  I think its true that wisdom comes with age.  And not only that, but I don't really think that there is ever really a "right" way to do anything.  I'm sure there is at least one wrong way, but I really think there are many right ways.  On my journey forward in my life I try to remind myself of that, and remember that what's right for one person is not always right for someone else, and that I need to figure out what's right for me.  But how do I figure out what's right for me?  There is only one way.  I need to be completely honest with myself.  It sounds so easy, but how often do you ask yourself why you do something, or why you make a decision one way or the other?  I mean really thought about it.  I think that asking yourself that question on a consistent basis is key to figuring out who you are, what you stand for, what is important to you, and how to achieve those things.  I'm sure one day my future self will look back on my 22 year old self and think how silly I was.  Like those letters you write in the 8th grade that your teacher sends to you when you graduate high school.  When I was in high school I used to keep a journal.  Sometimes I like to go back and read it, to remind myself of the experiences that have lead me to be who I am today.  I haven't written in forever, and I guess I've gotten so caught up in laziness and college recreation that I forgot how much I like writing.  I think I'll start writing more, maybe it'll help me figure out who I am tomorrow...