High School Advice #11 - Take a step back...relax!!! by Elizabeth Los @santaflash1, author of Second on the Right

I can’t tell you how much I appreciate all of the authors who volunteer to do guest posts for me. 

This guest post comes to you from Elizabeth Los who is the author of Second on the Right.

Take a step back . . . relax

Things are not as bad as they seem in that moment.

If someone had told me this during a point in my life where everything seemed to be going wrong, I would have rolled my eyes and muttered, “Whatever”.

But I’ve learned over the years that it really is true. It may sound lame, but what may seem dramatic and horrible one day may later seem ridiculous. I was stressing over that?! Right now, people are in an uproar over the new pick for Batman: Ben Affleck. Ok, it is tough to deal with what you might think is a bad choice for something you really like. But honestly, is it the end of the world? Oh yeah, consider that at the same time we have countries throughout the world at war, or near war, killing people with hardly a thought.

Who cares?

In High School, the rest of the world is out of sight and mind. It is a tight society. Everyone knows nearly everyone. So when something bad happens, EVERYONE finds out about it and it is harder to live down.

So what do we do with this information?

Have you experienced anything that made you feel as if the world were about to end? How much time had passed before you felt differently?

How do we react to…

… being defriended on Facebook?

… pimple found an hour before prom?

… your clothes you planned to wear to the game are dirty? Ok, some guys might do a simple sniff test, but the rest of us?

… smack talk about you on Twitter?

... forgetting your paper, due that day, or failing to study for that day’s math test and trying to cram week’s worth of information into your brain in a matter of minutes?

… a nasty rumor spread about you on campus?

… a secret you told in confidence is now public knowledge?

There are always going to be problems, crisis, and issues. Always.

It may take a few days, a week, even months to years before you finally recover. And during that time, you might feel you can’t get through it, but you can and will. Some have taken the “easy way out” if you want to call it that. But how does that really help? It doesn’t, other than for the world to miss out on a potentially great individual.

The negativity others might throw your way? Ignore them. Know that you are important. You have the potential to be great.

What makes you into the amazing person you are destined to be depends on how you react to bad situations. So take a deep breath. You’ll get through it. And, if you ever feel you can’t, that you need someone to talk to, find a trustworthy friend or confidant. If all else fails, contact me.

About the Author:  Elizabeth Los, Author of Second on the Right

True love's magic is not to avoid changes,but to navigate them successfully.

I am the author of Second on the Right, a story about the origins of Captain James Hook. Talk about going through trials, he goes through a great deal in this story.

I began writing fan fiction short stories in 2010 as means of escape. Every night, after ten hours of work and once the children were finally tucked in bed, for the fifth time, I would sit at my laptop and let my imagination flow through my fingers. Typing over eighty words per minute, my stories quickly began to form from novellas into full length novels. I used writing as my therapy, my release for stress.

I excel in positions that help others in need and find more enjoyment out of giving than receiving. This attitude of giving, I know, can be attributed to my upbringing. My first job at age fourteen was caring for pets at a local animal hospital. I now work full time in the healthcare industry, specifically in the area of Oncology.

On my off time, I am the pianist and music director for a small church. I build computers when the need arising, or piece together old parts for friends and family. I find adapting to software relatively easy. My favorite game is air hockey, which I repeated dominant on over my husband (though he claims otherwise). I am the mother of two children. My favorite fiction character is Sherlock Holmes, closely followed by Agent A.X L. Pendergast and Captain James Hook. After Second on the Right, I continue to write and am currently working on a series of mystery books, the first of which is loosely based on the kitsune legend.

Connect with Elizabeth:

~ Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Goodreads ~

Second on the Right

by Elizabeth Los

Goodreads blurb:  An original retelling of the classic story, Second On The Right explores what really happened leading up to and including the events on the secluded island of Neverland. Forget what you know of that iconic novel, this story will shatter the characterizations of Captain Hook and Peter Pan that many have come to remember.

Beginning in the 21st century, events lead from the present to the past, and back again.

Eileen Reed is a young New Yorker who had always dreamed of becoming a doctor. One special trip will challenge not only her self-confidence, but change the course of her life as well. James Benedict is the CEO of a successful shipping company in England. Meeting an ancestor from his family line, he discovers his family’s secret history of piracy and his true destiny. As the stories of these two soul mates intertwine and grow together, an ageless evil arises to threaten it all. James finds his moral compass challenged as his world falls apart around him. He discovers how far he will go and what lines he will cross to keep what is rightfully his.

You can read it now on Goodreads!

 Previous guest posts:  High School Advice #1, High School Advice #2, High School Advice #3, High School Advice #4, High School Advice #5, High School Advice #6, High School Advice #7, High School Advice #8, High School Advice #9, High School Advice #10