The Golden Rule (n.):

1. a rule of ethical conduct, usually phrased, "do unto others as you would have them do unto you," or, as in the Sermon on the Mount, "whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so unto them." Matt 7:12, Luke 6:31

Be kind to everyone, don't be quick to judge, and don't assume anything about anyone's situation. There is no way for us to know what the lives of the strangers standing next to us on the street have been like that day. We never know if the bank teller, barista, or customer service representative that we are giving a hard time has reached their breaking point. We never know whether our insults (however concealed or little that they may be) will be that one thing that pushes that person over the edge. You never know if the person serving you your dinner has had a bad night... if they've been shorted cash by their previous tables, if they've dealt with rude customers all day, if they are fighting to make rent, if someone close to them has just died. Never just assume that the look of sadness or frustration in their eyes is a part of their character, and not just their circumstances. We need to stop being so offended; stop taking everything so personally. We need to stop approaching this life with the thought "how can I get more for less?" and instead approach it with the question "what can I do to help someone out today?" We just need to slow down, and take a minute to notice a small detail of someone else's life, and maybe, just maybe, completely turn their day around.

The moment you reach a turning point.

I think I'll take a moment, celebrate my age;

The ending of an era, and the turning of a page.

Now it's time to focus in on where I go from here.

Lord, have mercy on my next twenty years.

In my next twenty years, I'm gonna have some fun,

Try to forget about all the crazy things I've done.

Maybe now I've conquered all my adolescent fears,

And I'll do it better in my next twenty years.

In my next twenty years I'm gonna settle all the scores,

Cry a little less, laugh a little more,

Find a world of happiness without the hate and fear,

Figure out just what I'm doing here,

In my next twenty years.

The moment that you get a fresh start.

Here's to a new year. A new apartment. A new job. A new crowd. A new routine.

To a new outlook. A new attitude.

Here's to a new me.

Those moments that used to be my entire life...

...that have now simply faded to black.

Every memory of guard. All of the times that I laughed until I cried. The friends that I had back in middle and high school and all of the times that I felt so very connected to these people that understood and were always there for me. Every crush, every ex, every shared insight or new revelation about the world.

And what has it all become now? Bitter memories of best friends who betrayed me. Thoughts of all of the time wasted on certain people. The ever haunting guilt of breaking a friend's heart. Reminiscences, shadows, of the best times of my life. Like a silent movie flickering in front of my eyes. Scars. That you can't feel, but can still see. Still vaguely remember how it felt.

I used to cling so tightly to these things, these moments. Because why not? It was the happiest I'd ever been. But what happens when those people and those situations go away? The happiness is no longer there. What remains is a bittersweet taste. I can remember the laughter, and not feel it. So, what are we to do? We are always told to live in the moment, to make it the best that it can be. But is our life simply a series of moments that will eventually evolve into unpleasant and painful remembrances? Or do we try to find something that will never fade away? All of us try; it's human nature. We all seek the "best friends forever" and the "true loves". And how many of us are still acquainted with the first BFF we ever had? How many times do we have to get it wrong before we're ensured a life of joy and stability? I'm really not trying to sound pessimistic here, but I've been stabbed in the back, and lost those so close to me that I considered them family, enough times to really wonder, what is the point? Why do we put so much effort into our social relationships, only to have them be so short-lived? Is there any relationship that is truly immune to time? How do we know that we're not wasting our time, that these people whom we love so much might be gone from our lives in one, two, five years time?

I guess that's just the true test of love. Being willing to invest so much time, putting so much emotional stock into a relationship, without ever being able to be certain if it will last. It's a risk we have to take. As much as it stings to have happy memories of bad friends, life would be much darker if one had no happy memories of any friends, at all.

The moment life walks right up to you and smacks you in the face.

In approximately 8 months and 18 days, I will officially be a VCU alumnus. I will have a Bachelor's Degree. I will have graduated, from college.

This realization, to be honest, scares the living shit out of me. I'm not old enough to have a college degree. When did this happen? Where did the past few years of my life go? In my head, I'm still only 17, newly graduated from high school and still trying to figure this whole college, job, life thing out. I feel like an impostor, like I shouldn't have come this far yet.

And while it's scary as hell, I guess it's a little bit exciting, too. I've worked hard to get this far and hopefully this will open up a whole new world of opportunities for me. It's terrifying and stressful, having to think of GREs and grad school applications and full-time jobs and... the future. The real-live, grown-up world future. But if I really think about it, I realize that if I just have a little faith in myself, I can get myself to where I want to be. Looking back at the past few years, I see that I have come a very long way in a very short amount of time and that I have matured a great deal since I graduated. And I realize now that there's no use in being scared or worried, or just sitting around wondering how I'm going to make it work. The only way to get anywhere is to just put yourself out there and make your life what you want it to be. Because no one else knows what you want or what you need, and they surely aren't just going to walk up to you and hand it to you. You have to work for it. Take it. Earn it. Create your life, not just live it. And I think that is what this last year is going to help me to do. This is my turning point. This is the doorway that will open up to the long road that is the rest of my life. And I think, I hope, that maybe I'm finally ready to face it.