I think most of us can agree that high school is an extremely weird, high tension, and chaotic time in many teens lives with lots of change and growth. We all made mistakes in high school. We all gossiped or said something about a friend that we didn’t really mean. High schoolers can be petty and mean—so can we stop with this now that we’re adults?

This message is for everyone, high schoolers included, but ladies 18 and above: let’s lead by example! A common misconception that I had growing up was that once you were an adult everyone was civil with each other; no one gossiped or threw shade or was petty behind your back. Unfortunately, this is just a human thing and it continues throughout life. I choose to stay positive and ignore it when I can.

Recently, I had a girl who was supposed to be a friend, treat me poorly over a boy. I was shocked, no one had ever treated me so poorly before to my face and she continued to talk about it when I was out of the room…over a boy! I’ve moved on from that negativity and I try for it not to bother me. Weren’t we raised to be strong, independent individuals? Feminism’s core is about supporting other human beings, especially other women.

The bottom line is: Girls should support each other! We’re in this together, matters of love are already hard enough and we’ve all been through some bad experience with someone we like, why make it harder? In everything we do we should be supporting those around us. When we support each other, we support a stronger, more positive, and caring community.