PAETYN RECTOR

I’m not talking about which shoes I’m leaving at home and what 3 stuffed animals I’m letting move in with me. I’m talking about the stuff that really matters and the experiences faced recently that will still matter in 4 years.

1. “Those who don’t mind, matter and those who mind, don’t matter”. The people in your life who are in your life for the right reasons don’t care about how you go about your life as long as you’re going about in safe, healthy, and happy ways. The people who criticize and judge the things that make you happy and bring you joy, shouldn’t be allowed to be a part of that joy and simply don’t need to be in your life.
2. You don’t owe anyone an explanation. This one is controversial I think but you don’t need to explain to anyone why you’re doing anything when you’re doing it for yourself. “Why’d you change your major?” ‘Cause I wanted to. “Why’d you break up with them?” ‘Cause I felt like it was the right choice for me. “Why’d you get that tattoo?” ‘Cause I fucking wanted to and it looked cool. Why do you even care? The choices you make for yourself are for you and nobody else and it really irks me when people care so much about life choices that don’t affect anyone else. If you’re not causing damage or harm, who cares? If it’s a choice that you feel is best for you or that you feel will make you feel better without hurting others, fuck it. It’s not that deep. And back to my last point, if they care, they shouldn’t be part of your life.
3. Ask yourself, “Would you want to live your life again?” If the answer is “no”, you need to make a change. Even if it’s just a small change that will make you even a little happier in life, make the change. You deserve to live a life that you want to relive a thousand times. If you think that buying a $7 latte will make your day just a little bit better, I absolutely encourage you to indulge that thought and satisfy your needs. You know best what you need to get through your day and the next so take those small steps to do so.
4. Not everything goes according to plan and sometimes you need to adjust. As a virgo, this one is hard to grasp because I play everything really elaborately and down to the minute when in reality, that’s not how life works. Sometimes you have to change your plan or lower your expectations and that’s O.K.! Life isn’t supposed to go according to plan and if it did, it wouldn’t be as fun.
5. Don’t trust people who are “too cool for school”. I learned at summer camp (as a counselor) that the least liked counselors and the most hated staff members were the ones who didn’t sing the songs, dance the dances, or chant the chants. It’s lame. Don’t be lame. Act like a little kid again, frolic around, jump in the puddles, embrace how young you are because you’ll never be that young again! NO shame from me if you release your inner child a bit.