When you're young, and I mean the naive little adolescent we all are or once was, you think you're invincible. You eat whatever you want, break rules, play sports, and you feel like you can do practically anything. However, there's always that one experience (or experiences) that shows you a different way. That experience is supposed to teach you to slow down and enjoy life, show you that you're not invincible, and that's okay. This whole freaking year (2020) is a testament to that. For me, it's when I took a 99 mph baseball off the skull in 9th grade. Emergency air lift, traumatic brain injury, years of recovery, blah blah blah. The details aren't that fun, but going through that was very important. I learned about acceptance. The first couple weeks, and because I couldn't remember what happened, I was in denial. Like, that couldn't have happened to me, right? It took me months to finally accept what happened and accept the adjustments I needed to take. I've become more understanding, especially with people who have gone through some difficult stuff. But most importantly, I learned that you can truly appreciate life and what it has to offer by taking a step back, soaking everything in, enjoying the little things. Sometimes, though, I do think my life-changing experience came a little too early. Could've broken a few more rules.