1. Always treat others how you want them to treat you.

2. Trust has to be earned.

3. One real friend is better than 1,000 fake ones.

4. Hard work really does pay off.

5. Think positive, always.

6. Hold onto your childhood as long as you can.

7. Live your own life; time goes by faster every year.

8. Don’t worry yourself over things you cannot change.

9. Don’t write someone off based solely on their immediate appearance.

10. Money isn’t as important as everyone makes it.

11. Don’t underestimate the value of long drives combined with loud music.

12. If you expect too much, you’ll have too many disappointments.

13. Everything, and yes, I mean everything, happens for a reason.

14. Never sell yourself short; you’re stronger than you know.

15. Things have a funny way of working out for the best.

16. What you think of yourself is far more important than what others think of you.

17. Always be open to constructive criticism.

18. Actions speak louder than words.

19. Never forget to be grateful for what you have.

20. Some people never change, but that’s okay.

21. Don’t hold grudges; it makes one bitter.

22. Be as open-minded and acceptable as possible.

23. Music, sunsets, and sunrises are three of the absolute best things in life.

24. If you’re not willing to work for it, you don’t deserve it.

25. Ninety-nine percent of the time, people will disappoint you; that’s just a fact of life.

26. Finding the people worth the work – that’s life’s real challenge.

27. If you truly, whole-heartedly believe in something, never give up on it.

28. Caffeine is like magic; and coffee, which happens to have a lot of caffeine.

29. I grew up watching the Internet grow from almost non-existent (or very rare), to snail-speed dial-up that would block the phone line, to what it is now, and it even amazes me what technology has become capable of.

30. Don’t try to understand the generation gap – it’s more like a generation ocean.

31. Purses are genius, infuriating black holes that most women couldn’t live without.

32. Teenagers are crazy; thankfully, most of them grow out of it.

33. Live and let live.

34. It’s okay to have opinions; it’s not okay to force those opinions on others who do not share them.

35. Respect every single person’s right to his or her own views regardless of what they are.

It’s nice to be able to get back on track with my column, although I usually wouldn’t write one in the form of a list – some things just need to be said. I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting lately; I actually made this list a while ago, and just got around to typing it up for the paper. These are general guidelines I live by, and I figured they were worth sharing, in the hopes that they might help or inspire you. They took a long time to perfect, and I hope you take them to heart; they came straight from mine.

Again, a huge thanks to anyone reading this – your time means more to me than you’ll ever know.

Until next week, readers; wishing everyone health and happiness during this beautiful season.