As Gen Z is collectively getting older and graduating high school and college, many reflect back to their childhood years. Many are realizing they miss their lofty and easy lives as youngsters with a nostalgic pain that it went by too fast.

The famous Ferris Buller said it best: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” 

Life has fallen into a routine. Wake up, check your phone, get ready for school, head to school, fake doing schoolwork and play on your phone. Then get home, finish up some homework, and play on your phone again. Soon enough, days and months pass.

Modern technology is one of the surefire ways that life gets quickly sucked from us. It provides the immediate rapture that is so desired by teenagers. 

School is also mainly a means for occasional socializing. The joy of learning new things and feeling your brain grow has disappeared and is now reprised by the idea the teachers are trying to drown you in homework.

Many teenagers, myself included, focus on blending in with the rest of their peers, turning away from risks, and laughing at cliché and detrimental memes on social media. Many are bored, unable to spend five minutes without any small pleasure. We find it impossible to find excitement in our thoughts, and lose the vivacity of being young, replacing it with empty sadness. 

So, slow down. Take a moment to stroll around the park, leave your music and media behind, and focus on nature. Take pleasure in the natural world; you will appreciate its power and peace. 

Realize that learning is a process; it takes time, and that the hard work leads to immense satisfaction when you finally understand it and work through it easily.

Life is a gift. Don’t be sucked into the vain and countless pleasures that steal the happiness of life.