Hoc titulus sit ambitiosior

I am not generally a reflective person, and so looking back on high school like this is strange to me. I focus on the moment, and try to live my life to the fullest, and looking back at my life has typically made me frustrated or angry at the mistakes I've made. But that was not the case today. I looked at my time in high school as a whole, not just focusing on the academic aspects of it. It was tough, its just not in my personality to reflect on things I've done. But I am proud of myself, and I am glad to see what I have done. I want to write this to myself, and to anyone who happens to read it, and I want to leave the advice that I would try to follow if I could rewind the clock to freshman year. Its probably going to be really cliche, but if it is, so what. Most good advice is cliche, thats what makes it good advice. If people have been doing it for this long it probably works.

1. Time is precious.
Never waste your time, and always follow your passion into whatever it leads you to do. Learn a new skill, read a book, hang out with your friends, but don't just sit around watching t.v all day, because it won't get you anywhere. Time goes by exceedingly fast, and if you just sit around and watch life happen, nothing will happen.

2. Man up
Life doesn't wait for you to sit around and complain, if you aren't satisfied with something, go and fix it. If life gets you down, look back at life and fight it. Life isn't fair, and if you can't deal with that fact, you need to get ready for disappointment.

3. Don't be a doormat
There's going to be times when you think that something going on around you isn't right. Maybe its a grade that got messed up, or maybe someone is took something thats yours. Don't roll over. Make the world work in your favor, and if you have the will to fight for what you want, you can get it.

4. Know who your real friends are
There will be people who say they're your friends, but when the time comes for them to be in your corner, they won't be. Know who you can trust, and who will be there for you when you need them.

5. Stay organized
If you aren't organized, life is gonna tear you apart.

Walt Whitman likes to scribble

Step 1: I can barely read cursive, so there are only a few things that I'm able to make out from this notebook. Short words like in and the, and letters with distinct markings, such as t and i, are some of the few words that I can distinguish, however I see the word ship a lot. This is probably in relation to his dialogue with Lincoln, as he referred to Lincoln as a captain in the poem "O Captain! My Captain!" Later in Whitman's notes there appears to be a section where Whitman draws himself slowly transforming into the distinctive clothing of Abraham Lincoln, made obvious by the giant top hat.

Step 2: From what I have read in the additional tabs, Whitman seems to have idolized Abraham Lincoln. His ideas on religion are particularly interesting, as they involve good and evil originating from one being. This can be seen as contrary to some religions, in particular Christianity, as it is preferred to separate the origins of good and evil. Whitman's idealization of liberty is interesting, as he addresses it as a concept which transcends all borders and time. It is an eternal ideal, and his ideas are fitting for someone considered to be one of the greatest American poets.