Dear Rhonda Life Lessons from a Father to His Daughter

18 Things to Remember 1. You ARE special. 2. God has an important job for you and everything you go through prepares you for it. 3. Everything will be all right in the morning; maybe not tomorrow morning, but one morning is going to come and everything will be all right. 4. Death is a fact of life. 5. Your work is your signature, what you leave to the world. Always do your best. 6. Everyone has an off day. This, too, shall pass. 7. Your reputation may precede you; make that a good thing. 8. You make your own luck by the amount of effort you bring to the table. 9. Everybody has an agenda. 10. Bad people do exist; be careful. 11. Romance is like a traffic accident: the slower you go, the less damage you do. 12. All you have to do is breathe and some people won't like you, will be jealous of you, and will talk about you. Ignore them. 13. If your intentions are pure, unselfish, and good, God will bring them to life. 14. If your actions are evil, self-centered, and mean, God will bring you to task. 15. You ARE the star of this epic production called your life. Everyone chooses their own director. Some are directed by greed, lust, boyfriends, girlfriends, husbands, wives, status, loneliness, or vengeance. I recommend choosing God as your director. 16. Love can make fools or geniuses of us all. 17. Don't be impatient; be efficient with your time. 18. Every new morning you see is God's way of saying, "Get up and go try it again." Adjusting to New Things Dear Rhonda, Enclosed is a newspaper article concerning ninth graders in the D.C. metropolitan area and how difficult it has been for them to adjust to their first year of high school. Problems ranged from being overwhelmed by the size of the school to being afraid to ask what might be considered a "stupid" question. A few of the students said they had problems making new friends and didn't know how to use their planners or study for all the different classes. After reading the article, it occurred to me that these problems don't sound so different from the complaints college freshmen make when they are away from home for the first time. The main difference would be that in high school, if students don't do well, they have to repeat ninth grade, but in college, if you don't do well, first you are put on academic probation and then you flunk out, never to return. There are scores of people who use the excuse, "Well, college just wasn't for me," when they know in their hearts they just didn't try hard enough. They got to school and, drunk with their newfound freedom, realized they could stay up and stay out as long as they pleased. They could go to class when and if they felt like it, and their teachers wouldn't give them the blues about it. They ate when they wanted, they slept when they wanted, and before they knew it, they failed'which is what they didn't want. Before you fix your mouth to give me that "Well, I just can't get it" business, let's remember you know the latest fashions, you've memorized all the words to the latest songs, and you've managed to stay on the honor roll. What I'm saying is, you can get it if you stick with it. It's all about the level of importance you give things. You must understand'you have to learn all you can while you can. One of the hardest things to do is go back and learn a second or third time what you should have learned the first time. Many who say they'll put school on the back burner and come back later to get their education often don't go back for it at all. Some quit college for what appears to be big bucks, only to discover they could have gone further if they'd stuck it out and earned their degree. They reach a certain level, then find they must go back to school to earn the degree theyKornegay, Demitri C. is the author of 'Dear Rhonda Life Lessons from a Father to His Daughter' with ISBN 9780375508424 and ISBN 0375508422.