Class of 2014

Yesterday I graduated highschool with a class of 112 homeschoolers.  It was such a blessing to be able to celebrate all we've done and learned and grown together.  Here is just a very short list of things I've learned in highschool:

1) Life isn't a fairy tale.
2) But life isn't a reality show, either.
3) Friends aren't always forever. God sometimes gives them to you for only a season.
4) Music speaks on an emotional level that not much else can.
5) It takes Charles Dickon's "A Tale of Two Cities" to make me cry.  Sorry Disney :)
6) Love is more than saying "I love you."  It's an action.
7) Sisters can be more than your relatives.  They can become your best friends.
8) It isn't easy growing up sometimes.
9) Learning to drive a standard car is a lot harder than you'd originally think!
10) Don't ever pass someone off as who they once were.  People change.  They are often worth getting to know.
11) God loves me like crazy.
12) He also loves the people I can't stand.
13) Life isn't about finding a soul mate.  You already have One in the God who created your soul.
14) Homeschoolers are awesome :)
15) Dreams sometimes don't become reality.  That's OK.  Always keep dreaming, though.
16) Give people the benefit of the doubt until you know the truth.
17) Don't be intimidated by confident people.  They are human, too.  Often, I think, they really just feel like you inside.
18) Decisions matter for more than just today.
19) Spiders can kill you -- especially if they are crawling toward you when you're driving a car.
20) Don't leave your lights on when you leave your car so that the battery dies.  Especially when it's snowing out and help is twenty minutes away.  (Ask me how I know these things!)
21) Friends are good for talking to when you're lonely or scared or excited or confused or happy or just about anything.
22) God's good for that, too.  He's always ready to listen to your needs.
23) Bitterness only destroys your joy.  It doesn't hurt whoever your bitter against.
24) Joy is more than an emotion.  It's a way of life.
25) I'm not the same person now that I was four years ago.  I'm stronger, more confident, more capable.