Dear 16 Year-Old Self

I think we all come across those moments in our lives where we think, "If I had only known that sooner!" or, "If only someone would have told me to start this back then!" and sometimes, let's be honest, it might not have made any difference at all. Then again, it might have made all the difference in the world. 
People often ask us the question, "If you could go back in time and do something differently, what would it be?" Of course those of us who have those brief moments of practical thinking answer with, "I wouldn't change anything," not because we sincerely wouldn't but because we know that it doesn't matter what we would have done if we could turn back time... because you just can't.
But it does raise an interesting train of thought, I suppose, when we are asked to consider this-- what are the top ten things you would tell your 16 year-old self if you could?:

1. Live with a tad more gumption!
2. Ask Mom and Dad more about their high school lives and how they prepared themselves for their future lives.
3. Come out of that shell you've built around yourself and make more friendships. 
4. Learn how to talk to people even when you have absolutely nothing in common.
5. Don't fall off the bandwagon of scripture study and journal writing... I'm sure there are a few memories that have been lost in the process.
6. Take up more hobbies so once you hit college you have a better picture of what you would like to pursue in your studies. 
7. Work harder at studying, even the subjects that come easily to you so that you understand what studying actually is (not just a contraction of students and dying...)
8. Take the time to learn more about cooking rather than spending all the time in the kitchen baking the same safe desserts all the time.
9. Don't hold on to the guy who has already written you off since the beginning.
10. Don't let everything get to you so much/effect your heart so negatively.

To be perfectly honest, to some people these might seem like common sense or even like they wouldn't matter much in the long run but looking at the last three years of my life, post-high school, I do tend to wonder what I could have done better to avoid some of the heart ache I've run head long into. 
It is also odd because I don't see 16 as being that long ago... but it was nearly 6 years ago now. It is funny how when you're 16 you think that things are going to last forever, that the boy you were half in love with all through high school would finally come through for you like all the romantic comedies say, that the toughest thing you will ever have to face is a tie between losing touch with friends and your big Chemistry test. 
Sure, there may still be some fire behind those subjects that you thought would always be the most important to you, but there are people I have lost touch with. There are tests that I have failed. But they aren't as important to me right now. I still have my family. We're still learning things about each other and will continue to do so from now into eternity. I'm still alive and although I make mistakes I can still learn from them and turn back to the path that I need to travel. And I find that I make new friends every day--some of them are made and they will stay on and others will pass away in the current of changing class schedules and even location.
I remember worrying about my popularity in school-- would I be the freshman, sophomore, or junior princess for Home Coming? And now... I just stick close with the friends I do make and am glad to find happiness and make memories with them. Within the last three years, there have been a few young men to cross my path. Some I have shared feelings that at the very least border-lined  love and others I haven't cared much for at all. Fewer still, still have a portion of my love and care and others I hardly think of except on the off chance that my past "experience" comes up in conversation. 
Every person who has touched my life since I was 16 has given me either insight into my own heart, the hearts of others, or life long lessons that I will one day share with my husband and then with my children as the need arises. Some have truly built me up. Others have broken me down and forced me to rebuild, always becoming even better than I was when I came across them.
I can only hope that something that I said or did touched their hearts in one way or another and encouraged them to be better people because of it. 

How much of an affect do we really have on people? Chances are, for most of them, we will never know and might not even be able to fathom in a million years.
I guess in a real exploration of these topics I come down to this-- what is the one thing I would tell my 16 year-old self if I could?

Make a difference. Touch the lives of those around you. Give them someone to trust. Give them something to cling to when they think all else is lost. Love them. Show them compassion. Don't be afraid to let people know how you feel. Be sure of yourself and don't let anyone tell you that you're worthless and your actions won't make an impression on anyone. Keep on smiling. You never know what difference it will make in their life.