Dear you,

Congratulations! You made it through another year of life. This past year hasn’t been easy, by any means. It was probably full of tears, heartbreak, and loneliness. It was full of changes, some good, and some bad. But it was also a year full of laughter, memories, new friendships, and love. No matter what life threw at you, you took it and ran with it. You grew from it and you learned from it, and that is something you should be incredibly proud of yourself for.

But this year is coming to a close, and it is time to look forward to the New Year. Just like this past year, I’m sure that life will take you on a roller coaster ride, and there are just a few things that I want to tell you before this New Year starts.

I want you to remember to love yourself, because you are worth loving. You are beautiful, strong, smart, creative, kind, loving, and caring. And those are enough reasons on their own. Everyone has known all of those things since they’ve known you, and they love you more than anything, so it is about time you start to love yourself too. After all, life is a thousand times better when you spend your time loving yourself opposed to picking yourself apart. So in this upcoming year I want you to remember to love yourself; hardly, strongly, and deeply love yourself.

I want you to open yourself up to the endless opportunities that lie in this world. I want you to have the courage to take those leaps of faith. I hope that you open your heart enough to lose the fear of failure and take that class you’ve always wanted to, go on a date with that cute boy who asked you out even though you’re afraid of getting hurt, and go do something out of your comfort zone. I hope that in this upcoming year, you don’t let your fears keep you from missing out on some of life’s greatest opportunities.

I hope that you live in the moment. I hope that you fully immerse yourself into each moment you’re in and be in it with your whole heart. This is important, because you never know when that moment will end; if you’re not fully in each moment you could miss out on making the memories of a life time. But oh boy, do I hope more than anything that you don’t let your phone prevent you from doing this. I hope that you have the courage to put your phone down, leave it at home, and detach yourself from it. And trust me, after time passes, memories that you can look back on and smile and laugh will be the most important thing you’ll have left.

I need you to know that it is okay to take care of yourself and put yourself first sometimes. I hope that you have the courage to get rid of the negative relationships in your life, and I hope that you have the wisdom to know when you need to. I hope that you find it in yourself to do what’s best for you, regardless of what anyone else thinks. I need you to know that it is okay to take care of yourself, and I also want you to always know that it is completely okay to put yourself first sometimes.

I hope that this year, you tell people you love them. Remind the ones you love that you love them, and if you love someone, tell them, always. Life is way too short to not let people know how you feel about them. People might not be there tomorrow; so let them know how important they are to you while you can.

And lastly, I absolutely NEED you to know how beautiful you are, inside and out. No matter what anyone says, or how anyone makes you feel, you need to always remember it.

I know that I don’t necessarily need to tell you all of these things, but sometimes it just helps to be reminded. I know that in this next year, you will grow, and learn, and discover more of yourself. I wish you the very best in 2016, I know you’re going to kill it.

Love,

Me.