Graduating high school, moving back to an island off the coast of Maine, saying goodbye to my best friends, not knowing when the next I'll see them, and starting off college in London with 300 other people that have no idea who I am has made me think about change. It's hard saying goodbyes and hellos sometimes. Thinking about all the memories I have and all that I've learned in my short time has made me realize a few things about change that I thought I'd share.
High school has a weird stigma attached to it I feel like. Most people think that if you enjoyed high school than you must have been one of the "popular kids." I don't think this is true. I loved high school. I definitely am not the girl that "peaked" in high school and is trying to relive her glory days, but I did love it. I went to Baylor School in Chattanooga, TN ( #GBR). The friendships I made there are going to last forever, and so are the memories I made (both good and bad). My school was amazing because it was your classic southern high school and the whole experience was basically a cliche in the best way possible, I had my best friends and friends from all different groups, and everything I imagined I wanted to do in high school I was which middle school me never expected to happen.
I moved to Maine and came back to visit a week before I left for London. Saying goodbye to my friends then was one of the hardest things I've ever done because I don't know the next time I'll see them, the earliest being in a year. It's hard going from having the best friends who you can tell anything and everything to, to not knowing anyone.
Thinking about all the memories I made makes it harder to say goodbye and move on. It's normal to be sad about it, but it got me thinking. Honestly I'm glad that it was that hard to say goodbye because that means I made the most out of my time in Tennessee. You see memories shouldn't hold you back from moving on and making new ones, they should make you grateful for the life you've lived so far and make you excited to make more.
It should make you feel worse if you have the feeling where you can't wait to leave a place because that means you didn't take advantage of your time there. A lot of people go through high school with the "I can't wait to get out of this place" mantra. That's honestly the worst mind set to have in any part of your life. Your attitude alters how you experience life probably more than anything else.
take away: it's ok to miss the memories you had in a certain time of your life because that just means that you lived life well
New beginnings can be scary. It's even scarier if you loved your life before this new change, but trust yourself and trust life. Trusting yourself may come easy, but trusting life can be difficult. Most of life is uncontrollable. You can think about it with a religious perspective that God has a plan for you, and that he will be with you and be watching over you or you can place your faith in karma. You probably think I'm crazy saying to trust in karma because "Karma can be a b#&*ch" But think about it. More then half of the events that have changed your life you've had no control over or if did have some control of them, they didn't go the way you planned. That's karma baby.
take away: trust yourself & trust life because things will happen; good and bad, but it will work out if you do your best
Thanks for reading my thoughts on memories and new beginnings. Most of this was my random stream of thought, but I've been thinking about this topic for a long time now. Following my new attitude towards memories and new beginnings has made me more grateful for my life than I'd ever imagine I'd be. As they say, "I'm grateful for where I've been, and excited for where I'm going."
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