Optimize for joy and make money doing it.

I’d wanted to be seen as a good girl ever since I was a child, and good girls went to church. At least, that’s what my mother said.

I couldn’t stop staring at the flier all the way home. Tracy kept talking to me, but I was lost in my own world.

The party was packed with punks and stoners. The musk of weed plumed toward us as we squeezed through two stoned metal heads at the entrance to the living room, which was filled with too much smoke an

I hadn’t been on a date since eighth grade, and even then, it wasn’t much of a date.

There was a time when Tracy and I hung out together every single day. Sometimes we hung out so long that it bled into the next day, and sometimes that day turned into a whole weekend.

An interesting phenomenon occurred once everyone thought I was crazy. They started questioning every word I’d ever said.

I spent the weekend trying to cram a thousand workouts into two days. It’s impossible to do two months’ worth of working out in a weekend, but I tried anyway.

We were in a good mood as we walked down the hall and stepped onto the elevator, following the directions the nurse had given us. Once we reached the third floor, though, that all changed.

Basketball practice was hard when you were too tired to keep your eyes open. I got hit in the head at least three times every afternoon for the rest of the week, but that wasn’t the worst part.

Paintings of the Void hung all around Doctor Thatcher’s office. They were on every wall in her waiting room, and her therapy room. I didn’t know if it was elegant or macabre to hang a symbol of death

Rebecca never thought she was suicidal. However, that didn’t stop her from jerking her car off the side of the road last night.

The smell of lilacs rushed through the air and filled my nostrils the moment I stepped through the door of my house.

One of the most embarrassing experiences of my life happened today when I tried to get my job back at the Taco Shack.

I took a walk to clear my head. It did not help. It made things much worse.

Trisha drove me to school today. It took everything in my power not to bound down the stairs with glee when I saw her car in the driveway.

For the last month, Trisha and I have hung out every single day after school. She writes songs and listens to music while I do homework or read.

For the last month, Trisha and I have hung out every single day after school.

We went to the hospital today. It was horrible.

It started with a bang. No, a slap. My mother's head hit the floor. My father stood over her. We had to get out. If we didn't, my dad would kill her. So, we ran.

Pop’s house smelled of musk, born from years of neglect. Waves of stale air knocked the wind out of me.

Thirty-seven minutes, fourteen seconds. Rosalie reamed my mother for thirty-seven minutes, fourteen seconds.

It took two hours to walk into the middle of town. I used half an oxygen tank and needed seven rest stops, but eventually we made it.

I went through the whole morning without seeing her. Finally, at lunch Penny made an appearance.

I’d missed 60% of school days since I started at East Willow Middle, so when the principal pulled me into her office I wasn’t surprised in the least.