Dear Manda;

Here are a few things I think you should know:

Money buys things. If you have enough money, you live. If you don't have enough money, you survive. And if you have too much money, people steal it.

Friends are not expendable. You need them. They need you. Yes, you'll fight, but 15 minutes after you call her a terrible friend, you'll realize she's one of the best things in your life. So apologize. Don't call her a terrible friend anymore. And put up with her flaws, because you've got some too.

No matter how much or how little eyeliner you wear, it will NOT make you popular. And even though you spend your entire life trying to explain to people that that's not why you wear it, they won't listen. And they'll call you a poser. Just like if you wear tight pants and dye your hair black. They're the posers. They don't understand that people actually do things for reasons other than looking cool. So keep doing what you want for whatever reasons you want and ignore them because they're useless.

Some people annoy you on occasion. Some people annoy you on frequent occasion. This is no excuse to hurt them. They are still people, no matter how much they follow you or how many stupid questions they ask. God still loves them. You should try it.

Long thick hair is the spawn of Satan.

Finding friends in unexpected places is magical. Those people you randomly hung out with one day? They're cool too. Don't give in to the pressure of staying in your own group of friends. Step out of your comfort zone, and you'll have much more fun in life.

Food prepared by genuinely nice old ladies will always fix a broken heart. No matter who broke it or how.

Making lists is the best way to arrange your thoughts in the order of when you think of them. It is not necessary for there to be significance in the order in which you place them, but parents, teachers, and other adulty-type people are more likely to give you things if you at least attempt to look organized (and trust me, they rarely find out you aren't).

Your opinions are just fine. You don't have to change them for anyone else if youdon't want to. People who change their mind because other people say so are called conformists. And although they seem to be the most popilar right now, they'll grow up to be a grand total of nothing special, because they're spineless. You might think you want to be one of them, but you're wrong.

Randomly bursting into song is only allowed in movies. People look at you strange if you do it too often. You want to avoid this.

Making people laugh is the most wonderful thing you can do. Better than buying them something, better than compliments, better than giving advice. Sometimes all someone needs is a little humour in their life to put it all in perspective.

Emo boys are hot. Period.

Some girls will think you are strange for thinking emo boys are hot. They have clearly not met an emo boy.

Chuck Norris jokes are always funny. Even when you're heard them a thousand times, you are still laughing - at least on the inside - when you hear them.

Song lyrics never exactly explain your life unless you write them yourself. And writing songs isn't lame. It's creative. People who think writing songs is lame are mindless MTV zombies with no backbone. They also quite possibly buy their personalities at American Eagle, or a store of the like.

Homework and Water do not mix nicely. Water has a never-ending vendetta against Homework, and when the two meet, Water wins.

'42' is basically the universal answer to any question life can throw at you. However, if this should fail, you can try 'possibly', 'in a minute', 'mac and cheese', or 'I just lost the Game'. These five answers will conquer awkward silences in almost any conversation, and more often than not, will actually revive it (just don't use any of these in response to inquiries of a serious nature).

I wish I had learned this sooner. But now's your chance to learn from my mistakes, and be better than I've been. Grow. Believe. Love many, trust few. Choose your battles wisely. You know I've always got your back.

Love forever,
Manda