What I know at 25:

Say yes when someone asks you if they can get you a cup of coffee. It’s not really about the coffee.

People will lie to protect themselves. And, more often than not, the moment they realize how wrong they are is the moment they will fight the hardest.

The bad and good rush in together.

Get comfortable with facts. Speak rationally. Speak Truthfully.

It's okay to ask for help. By the time you're twenty-five, you and most everyone you know, has (or should have) visited a counselor. And that? That is a brave act.

Surround yourself with people who are smarter than you.

There will be whole stretches of time when everything feels unnerving and terrifying and deeply unsettling. But you must keep going. You must show up. You must pace yourself. And when given the chance to say something, you must take it.

Another thing: the act of writing can be incredibly difficult.

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I know that age is, for the most part, one of the most arbitrary ways of measuring a person, but some years hold such a particular portion of significance. This year has been steep learning curve after steep learning curve, but I love the fittingness of shifting ages right at the end of it, during this season of advent. The cure for deep hurt or loss, fear or confusion, trepidation or joy,  is the deep admiration and adoration of our Savior. And that is really the most important thing I know.