Dear Junior Me,

I hope the 11th grade will be better. This tenth grade has been so hard. I have very few friends, and everyone ignores me no matter how much I try to interact with them. I gave up interacting with them long ago, even though they may have a good side (they have one, I promise). Still, please don't be like that in your new school. Treat it like a fresh start, and as my current bestie told me long ago, take what you've learned in your old school and apply it to your new one. She's right, please do. I've learned it the hard way, as you may remember. 

Also, please chill out this time. It may be the most challenging academic year in high school, but you cannot take more stress. I'm serious. Teenage life isn't like what the movies show, yes. But that doesn't mean our lives shouldn't have any fun. Please fulfill the teenage bucket list I wasn't able to accomplish. Go outside, get messy, get into trouble (a little). Some fun here and there shouldn't hurt. It may bring memories instead! When I ask adults about their teen life, they usually talk about how much fun they had. They touched grass, and so should you. 

Oh, yeah. One more thing. Please choose the right friends instead of forcing yourself into a group that doesn't accept you. No, most people aren't bad, but there are some people you won't get along with no matter what. I learned that the hard way, and I hope you remember the lessons I've learned from picking the "wrong" group of friends. Ok, they weren't exactly "wrong." Just incompatible. Life is like that sometimes. We attract ourselves to some people and repel ourselves from others, and that's ok. So, pick people you wholeheartedly like as your friends. I promise that will make your life a thousand times better. 

This is just a short letter, and I really want to write a longer one, but that would take years to finish! Yep, that's how much I learned this year. Still, if I may summarize all these lessons in one sentence, it would be this: there is hope somewhere, somehow. Trust this and keep going. You can do it. Si, se puede! 

With love,

Sophomore You