The earliest 'lesson' was taught to me as a young child by my mother and the most recent was something that I probably already knew but just recently acknowledged. All of these lessons have been learned through experience and with the help of my family and friends. I don't know if they will mean anything to you, but they have a deep meaning to me. I think I can say that these lessons have been placed in my philosophical mental database and will be treasured. I plan to add a new one every year. I do no know if this plan is plausible, for I think there are more lessons learned in one year than pigeons on a statue at the park. Do not view my lessons as 'rules'. They are not codes of conduct I believe everyone, or I, should live by. They are extentions of life put into a few 'simple' (I use the word loosely) words so I can feel like my thoughts are complete. (Slight sidenote: I am a compulsive list-maker.)

1. If they tell you that you are not good enough, they are not good enough for you.
2. Listen to your mother, she’s probably right. But there is the possibility that what she says is not fact but valid nonetheless.
3. Everyone is good at something.
4. Do what comes natural but don’t hesitate to explore the unknown.
5. We are all selfish.
6. Accept the fact that you may hurt the ones you love.
7. Life is not worth living without an obsession… but obsessions can prove fatal.
8. Just because it is not an original thought does not signify the thought has no value.
9. Being "normal" isn’t a bad thing.
10. Everything is okay when Counting Crows are on the muzak.
11. Don’t dwell in the past. Don’t dream of the future. Live in the now and be.
12. Don’t accept laziness or ignorance as an excuse. If they want it to happen badly enough, they will make it happen.
13. A cliché wouldn't be a cliché if there weren't some truth in it.
14. Truth and fact are not synonymous.
15. Not all of your friends need to know the "real" you. Some of them cannot handle it, and that is alright.
16. When people say that the first year of college really changes you, believe it. No matter how stubborn or how ‘unsheltered’ you may be... you’ll experience some
17. Most people enjoy talking about themselves.
18. 'High School drama' still exists after high school.
19. The best thoughts are the ones that make you smile when no one is looking.
20. Signs are what you make of them.
21. Love: though it may hurt, though it may not work out, in the end, revel in knowledge that you can feel that way about an individual, and never feel bitter about caring for another person.