I want to tell the girls. I want to tell the boys.

Tonight, we had the youth "wrap-up" fireside for trek, girls camp, and Helaman's camp (all of which I went to except for girls camp and Helaman's camp). A boy gave a talk about trek, and in his talk he said that the women's pull made him realize that as young men and priesthood holders, they need to treat women with respect. He said some other sweet things about how guys should be treating women, but I don't exactly remember them, so I won't share. But, that got me thinking, and I decided to blog about things I wish girls would know and remember, and things I wish guys would know and remember. (There are two blog posts that I have read that kind of relate to this. You can find Ten Things I Want to Tell Teenage Girls here and Ten Things I Want to Tell Teenage Boys here.)

My Message to the Girls 
Girls, never EVER let a guy treat you poorly. Stand up for yourself and remember who you are. You are a literal daughter of Heavenly Father, the King of Kings. He loves you, and He wants the best for you. Decide what you want, go for it, and don't settle for anything less than the best. You may believe that the only way for you to be happy is with a guy. Guess what? There are so many ways you can be happy, that don't require a guy. Hang out with your girls, do what makes you happy, shop 'till you drop, have High School Musical and Hannah Montana marathons (it's okay, I promise. I still do it, all of the time, and I'm in college. Yeah, definitely not mature enough to be in college ;D.), don't worry about looking perfect every second of every day. Wear sweats, sing like crazy in the car, laugh so hard you cry. Be you. Don't change who you are for a guy. Someday, you'll find him, and he'll treat you like the queen you are. He won't lie to you, he won't hurt you, and he won't betray you. He will be everything you are looking for, so don't sell yourself short. You are incredible! 
Always treat everyone with respect. We're not perfect, we make mistakes. But everyone we meet is important. Everyone we meet has something special about them, is worth so much to someone, is struggling with some unseen challenge. Treat them with respect. Treat them with kindness. Let them be better because they met you. I love the quote that says "Be the kind of woman that when she wakes up in the morning, the devil says 'Oh man, she's up!'"
Be careful about how you act around the boys. Apparently we have a big impact on them. Are they going to be better for knowing you, or are they going to be worse for knowing you? How do you dress around them? How do you act around them? Do you make it easy for them to keep their thoughts clean and for their standards to remain high? Keep in mind the kind of guy you hope to marry. If you want to marry an amazing guy, you need to be an amazing girl yourself. I plead with you to be gentle with the boys. Treat them respectfully, with love and kindness. You have an impact on them, and the things you do can change them. 
One last thing. (I've added onto this section like a million times.) Love yourself. Don't be vain and full of it, but love who you are. Love the way you look. You are beautiful. You have an incredible body that can do so many things. Take care of it; physically, mentally, and spiritually. Just love who you are and be the best that you can.

 prettystuff.tumblr.com

 apostoliclighthouse.org

My Message to the Boys 
I feel like a lot of the time, so much focus is placed on who the girls are and their value and worth that the boys kind of get neglected and don't hear how much they themselves are worth. Well, I'm here to tell you that you are of infinite worth as well. I find it incredible that guys age 12 and up get to hold the priesthood, God's power. Our Heavenly Father has trusted you to act in His name, to carry His power. You are worth so much! You are truly incredible, and you are destined to do great things. Never forget that. You have such great responsibility and strength that we girls can't help be in awe of you. We look to you for strength, for power, for protection. You are the rock that many girls lean on. I hope that says something to you about your influence and your value. We need you.
Never forget the influence and power you have over a girl. A girl can care so much for what you think of her that she will sometimes try to become what she thinks you want. She spends hours thinking about how to get your attention, how to get you to notice her, how to make you proud and not disappointed in her. What are you going to do with that power? Please don't use it to break her, to crush her. Remember your strength, but use it gently.
You are strong. You are courageous. You are incredible. You have great power. Everything you do affects so many people. Be like the 2,000 stripling warriors. Be that bold, that trusting, that loving, that courageous, that strong, and I promise you that you will go far. Remember how much you mean to those who care about you. It may not seem like it, but it's true. You are valued more than you will ever know.
I wish I had more to say to you boys, but seeing as I'm not a boy, I don't really know what to say. If you have questions though, I will do my best to answer them. If you need to remember who you are or what you are worth, I won't hesitate to tell you. You are of infinite worth. You were worth so much, that Jesus Christ died for you. You are sons of God. You have great power and great ability and great potential. Live up to it.

If I've offended anyone, I apologize. These are my thoughts and feelings. I am not perfect, and I do make mistakes. But I hope at least that I've reached someone. If you need someone to listen, I'm here, and so is your Father in Heaven. 

 propertyof-jesus.tumblr.com

 
P.S. The images I found are from Pinterest, and I've named the websites where they are from.