It's been a while

Wow. I haven't posted in forever! So today I was just thinking about how there's never enough time in the day to do everything you want to do. There's never enough time in your life to accomplish everything you want to accomplish. Unfortunately, this isn't something you can change just by wishing you could. If it were that simple, life wouldn't be worth living. You've got to live for the moment. Plan ahead, of course, because it's necessary. But when it all comes down to it; there is no such thing as tomorrow. There is only today. Because no matter how many "tomorrows" you plan for, they'll never come.
So go out and do the things you want to do today! Don't put off living your life just because there "isn't enough time". Really, if you budget your time right, you could have more spare time than you know what to do with. Go learn to play the guitar or the piano like you always wanted to. Read a book. Write a novel. Write a poem. Make up a dance to your favorite song. Go to the park. Jump off a swing. Learn how to dance the cha-cha. Everyone should write their own bucket lists. So write yours, and get started on crossing off everything you write. It will be a work-in-progress for your whole life. And it will be enriching.
I know what you're thinking. "She's seventeen! What does she know about any of this?" Well, I've got news for you. My heart is older than dirt. I've been to the depths of depression and back, and let me tell you it was NOT pretty or fun or helpful in any way. I've been to the peaks of happiness and tumbled the whole way down to some sense of normalcy. The only way to live your life is by your own rules, through your own wants. Like Mom always says, "You gotta learn to roll with the punches."
One of my favorite quotes of all time goes something like this; life isn't meant to be ended by you laying in a nice wooden box, dressed in your finest finery, and looking ready to go to a wedding. It's meant for you to slide in sideways, scraped, bruised, totally in disarray with a drink in one hand and a camera in the other, shouting "Woo! What a ride!"
Yes, I embellished it. But that's what I do. I am, after all, an aspiring author. But the point or the message, whatever you want to call it, is still the same. Don't waste your life wallowing in a pit of self-loathing and despair. "Every cloud has a silver lining." You just have to hunt for it sometimes.
Granted, there are times in your life where happiness is going to be all but unattainable. I have those days. Everyone has those days. But it's how you recover from those moments that counts. Don't let those darkened moments destroy the rest of your day, your week, your life, whatever! Just don't do it! It's not worth it. Life is meant to be lived, not complained about.
It's a hard lesson to learn, especially if you're stubborn like me. But trust me when I say that when you learn it, suddenly everything falls into place. Even when nothing goes "according to plan", it all works out. Maybe not the way you originally wanted it to, but sometimes it's better that way.
As the old adage says, "Expect the unexpected." There will be times when happiness will suddenly just tackle you from behind, without you knowing it was even there. But that's the great thing about happiness, you'll both laugh and you'll get back on your feet. Sure you'll be a little bruised or a little shaky from the adrenaline rush, but hey, take what you get and make the best out of it!
So, before I start sounding too repetitive, I'll wrap this up. Get off your ass and live your life. End of story. No, scratch that. Begin your story. Right now! And don't forget to write it down for the sake of posterity. With that, I bid you all adieu for now. I promise I'll try to be better about updating this page!