22 Things I've Learned in 22 Years

• be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.
• dreams are the touchstones of our character.
• empathy is the greatest virtue.
• everything is a matter of perspective.
• experiences always trump possessions.
• having a thousand credentials on the wall will not make you a decent human being. But genuinely helping one person everyday will.
• in order to be irreplaceable one must always be different.
• judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
• just because you're an adult doesn't mean you can't act like a kid.
• love, not time, heals all wounds.
• never stay because you think "it will get better." You'll be mad at yourself a year later for staying when things are not better.
• nine out of ten things you worry about never happen.
• respect is earned.
• sometimes you put up walls not to keep people out but to see who cares enough to break them down.
• the essential things in life are seen not with the eyes, but with the heart.
• there's no such thing as a bad mistake unless you don't learn from it.
• those who aren't the easiest to love are the ones who need it the most.
• time you enjoy wasting, was not wasted.
• you can be a somebody and it won't make any difference. You don't have to be a somebody to make a difference.
• you can fully bathe with less than a bucket of water.
• you will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger.
• your conscience won't keep you from doing wrong, but it sure keeps you from enjoying it.