When you think about the things that make you “you”, you might give a big fact from your past, or a list of characteristics, or the things you currently do - what you study, your job, the school you go to.

These are the big-ticket items, and they are all important.

That’s how we’re expected to introduce ourselves at job interviews, formal events, to new people in adult environments.

As a young person, the way you relate might be more cultural, more personal.

The music you like, the games you play, the sports teams you follow, the people you know - these become lines that make us feel comfortable around each other and open us up to connection. And we start to believe really that this is all we are.

The truth is, you are far more than these “big” things - big moments, big decisions, big names like your job or your family name. These seem like the most important things, but life is lived every day, a lake that you are swimming through and experiencing all the time.

We are always in the present. And that present is all the little moments you know so well.

• What you have for breakfast?
• What it feels like to get up in the morning (and look at your alarm!)?
• What it feels like to sleep in?
• What it feels like to receive a Snapchat on the bus or send a Messenger message to your friend?
• What it feels like to sit in class, daydreaming while the teacher drones on?
• What lunchtime feels like?
• What it feels like when you walk past someone else and smile, or crack a laugh at something new, or chuckle over an older joke?

The big moments come along now and then, and when they write the books, yes, these are the big signposts on the road in our life. But what about the road? That’s what makes your life. That’s nearly all of it! Deep down, you know this, and it’s easy to forget.

This is why having good habits every day and good people around you who care for you is so important.

You will find, for example when you have someone positive in your life, who might be able to give you little taps of support from time to time, the good everyday little things build up, and next thing you know, you’re flying high.

You’re strong!

The things that make you you are the things you are doing every day, one after the other, maybe without even realizing it. They form who you are, they make you stronger or they take away your strength.

It would be lovely to see you find a path through life with deep waters, that can carry you through the bumps on the road, and can help you soar when you grow and show the gold within you that makes you special and really, really beautiful.