ONE: get a buzz cut.
Know that you have no control. Know that life is going to change and you can’t control it, but also know that you have control over yourself. You can control who you allow into your life, so cut off the people who are hurting you, cut off bad habits. Cut off your hair. Get a buzz cut and embrace change.
TWO: everyone poops, just accept that.
Why are we embarrassed? We all do it and we can’t control it, so why do we shame each other for the things we can’t control? Why do we hide our poops like we hide our insecurities? We all have insecurities so why don’t we laugh about them, talk about them, take comfort in the fact that someone shares your same insecurity. Let your negative thoughts out of your mind, flush them away and accept that they are what makes you you.
THREE: shut up.
Your voice is important, but you don’t always need to talk. Learn to accept silence and be at peace with your own solitary. Learn to enjoy the voices of the people around you. You don’t always need to be the loudest or have a clever insight because if you just learn to shut up then you open yourself to the possibility of seeing new perspectives, so just shut up and listen.
FOUR: spend your time wisely.
You spend half our time worrying about what others are doing, but why do we care? Time is leaving us. Time isn’t waiting. Our past is established and our futures are unsettled, but we control our present moments, so take comfort in the fact that you can fill each of these fleeting moments with a memory you don’t want to forget. Spend each second pursuing a passion, following a dream, trying to become a better person. Life is too short to be judging others, to be scared, to worry about what others are doing when you haven’t done a thing. Be unapologetically bold and allow others this same privilege.
FIVE: be silly.
Life’s not that serious, we’ve chosen to make it so. Humans were given the ability to create a free world and instead our ancestors have chosen war, debt, and capitalism. In a world where access to good education is a privilege instead of a right, do what we’ve been forced to suppress and allow yourself to be silly because what does society know? Realize that life isn’t a path you are being forced to follow, but instead a road uncharted. Realize your inner child is calling for you to let them out and realize that whether you are sixty or five it is ok to let that little voice take over and have fun for a moment because life shouldn’t have to be this serious.