19.

So this is it huh? the big one-nine (why do people always put ages like that?).

Anyways, so today I turned 19. It has been a great birthday thus far and the day has barely begun. I look forward to the rest of the day because I'm pretty sure I'll manage to accomplish the goal I set for every birthday...make it better than the year before.

Coming into my birthday this year, I wasn't too excited. Other people were actually more excited than I was, but I have proper reason for this. I feel that I have learned the true value of time and with the approachment of my birthday, it's just a confirmation that life is going by way too fast. On top of that, my birthday always comes towards the end of the school year, so today sets the beginning of the final stretch of the first year of my college life.

I'm trying to look past those negatives that my birthday brings, and focus on the better things. My birthday is also a great moment of reflection for me. It allows me look back on the past year and see how much I have grown, not only physically and age wise, but as a person in general. I'm able to figure out what things went wrong and how I can make them better so I can make my 19th year on this Earth better than the past 18 years were. 19 is a big stepping stone, it's the last year of your teenage life. You've already been legal for a year and have had time to mature, but you're not quite a "full adult" yet, so you can still make some common "teenager mistakes." 19 is the year you grow and become that final person you want to be when you do turn 20 and can no long be called a teenager, because you are an adult.

For me, turning 19 means having to face new challenges and accomplish new goals. It's safe to say, I am ready.

I'm going to celebrate my big day today by having lunch with some friends, going to disneyland for a bit, dinner with my pals, and then a night with my MCIA fambam at practice. I think it's goign to be a pretty legit day, and I can't wait.

More to come later!! (that's what s/he said)

<3 Richard.