1/10 Five things that One Tree Hill taught me

This week, I finished watching One Tree Hill. I watched lil bits of it way back in elementary and middle school, but I was never up to date with it. So, one day, while listening to Spotify, Gavin DeGraw's "I Don't Wanna Be" came on, and I immediately felt nostalgic. You see, this amazing song was the opening song for OTH, and somehow...because of all the random nights and times I watched the show, it was the anthem of my childhood. A few jam sessions to the song later, I decided to watch OTH again and, this time, completely and whole-heartedly. So here we are!
Like I said, I finished OTH this week, and I haven't been the same since. I cried the last two episodes because I knew the end was coming, and I'm still crying tbh (if only on the inside, occasionally on the outside). Yeah, it seems a bit ridiculous, but you GUYS...It's SUCH an amazing show. So freaking wise and beautiful and glorious and perfect. I really recommend it with all of my heart.
Alas, I'm done writing about my sad whining and pining. Instead, I want to share with you all FIVE THINGS THAT OTH TAUGHT ME:

1. It's okay to be ambitious and want what you want.
   I think it sucks that to be selfish is seen as the worst thing in the world. "Selfish" has such a crappy connotation with it that it scares people into thinking that ALL we have to be is selfless--to put everything and everyone else above ourselves. But I don't think that's true. If it is, then I am doing life so so wrong.
   In the show, the characters start off as high schoolers, and they each have their own dreams. For a long time, some of them are scared of chasing their dreams for fear that they'll be leaving people or something else behind. But they don't. They never do. The things that truly matter follow us where we go--they just take different paths and may take a bit longer to follow. More importantly though, if you are doing something that YOU want to do and it is something that you believe will make you TRULY happy, do it. Never compromise when it comes to your own happiness (obviously compromise if someone's life is at stake, but I hope things never get that extreme for anyone).
2. You can find an infinite amount of hope in love. 
   Nathan and Haley (Naley) honestly have one of the greatest love stories that I can think of, and they are 75% of the reason why I love OTH. You might think that it seems a bit naive that I think I can learn from the love between two fictional characters, but I have. Naley taught me that in the darkest of situations, if you love someone unconditionally and they you, then you're pretty gosh dang lucky because at the end of the day, that's all that really matters. You have someone that is more than willing to hold your hand and suffer with you through all of the scary and sometimes crappy times. Above all, you have someone who believes that you can make it through, someone who believes in you. And, if that's not special--if that's not HOPE--then I don't know what is.
3. You--and only you--can define who you are (and who you will become). 
   One of my favorite parts of watching OTH was watching the characters grow. Brooke Davis started off as a girl only ever wanting to have fun, but she grew so freaking much. Somewhere along the way, she started believing in herself. And when she did, her whole world changed. She found out who she was and figured out who she wanted to become and became it. In the end, B. Davis got all she wanted. She teaches me that YOU become who YOU want to become. Other people can't influence them unless you allow them to, so don't. Don't give anyone or anything power over who you are.
4. Life is hard and it sucks a lot of the time, but there are so many things worth fighting for. 
   A lot of tragic things happen on One Tree Hill, and sure, it can get pretty dramatic at times, but tragic things happen all the time in real life, and that sucks. When bad things happen, we often spend a lot of time thinking of what went wrong. Of what if's. Of what could have been's. And that's okay, BUT you can't be in that state of mind forever. It's really easy to get wrapped up into the unfairness and sadness of it all, but at the end of the day, life keeps moving...and so should you. Why? Because life has so much to offer you. The WORLD has so much to offer to you. There's love, adventure, happiness to be found and had. Sunsets to be watched. Words to be heard. Things to be learned. There's so much out there, and you miss it when you stop fighting.
5. Change happens. It happens a lot, all of the time, and almost always...but it's not always bad. In fact, it's usually for the better.
   People change. Cities change. The world changes. And that's okay because I bet you're changing with it. It's sometimes hard to notice changes within ourselves, but they're there. I know this because as you experience life, you experience new things, and those things change you in some way, shape, or form. It's Newton's Law of Inertia: "Every object in a state of uniform motion tends to remain in that state of motion unless an external force is applied to it." These things can change your perspective and force you into uncomfortable situations that you never thought you could love. All of these things--these changes--they're shaping you into the person you're supposed to be, and I think that's freaking awesome. 

I loved One Tree Hill so much, and I'm so sad it's over for me. If I could brainwash myself to forget it and then watch it all over again, I would. And, as corny as it sounds, it's reminded me of the reason why I love humans: we're all so intricate and complex yet simple, so fragile yet resilient. Humans are awesome, and so is One Tree Hill. Watch it.