I never thought I would write an open letter, but this one is for me and to look at myself from myself. Not only do I want this for myself, but I also want it to help you guys who took the time to read this in a hope that you can understand me. Hopefully, you can learn something by either doing what I do or the exact opposite. This is about me, my life, and what I hope that you can accomplish.

So, hey future me! First off, sorry for all of the problems that I left for you to deal with that I wasn't quite ready to deal with yet. I have set you up with a challenge that I hope you can accomplish in 15 years. It's three simple things: love, career, and yourself. It's easier said than done, I know. I haven't accomplished any of these things either.

Let's start with "yourself," as this will help you to accomplish the other two. I know right now, for me, things are tough, especially since mom's death, my new lifestyle, and the girl who I like are all taking me for the most extreme roller coaster ride of my life. I just feel like the world is stacking straws on my back. If you're at this point in life, just move forward. That's what I've been doing now and it's been working, so I expect you to do the same. Keep moving forward. Sometimes, you need to stop, take a breather, and break down. Do it, but then get right back up and keep moving in the one direction that you know: forward. This is how I'm finding myself. Believe it or not, I experience and grow a lot more when I am moving forward rather than laying in my bed, staring at the wall. Right now, I have a few regrets and a couple of mistakes, but that's OK because I am going forward.

To give you a kick of nostalgia, I will describe who I am now. I'm 5'7" and 141lbs. I live in Cayuga hall of Indian Quad at college and, at home, I live in Commack. Do you remember? It's the house with the rock diving board. My favorite hobby is to sit back and either write what I am feeling or to play some League of Legends (by the way, I hope that I am diamond rank in 15 years). My favorite book is "Perks of Being a Wallflower" because I related to the entire book for my entire high school existence. My favorite movie is definitely "Pulp Fiction" because I love the conversations between Jules and Vinny. My favorite food is pizza and my favorite color is black. I love to go on mini adventures by myself and hang out with my friends from "Children of The Balance" and "MOAR FLAGS MO FUN." I hope that my music taste doesn't change. I love all kinds of music, but mostly music that I would describe as "chill." When I grow up, I want to be in California working for IGN. My dream is to be walking down my block with my beautiful wife and our kid up on my shoulders with a dog chasing behind me. All of us are smiling at seemingly nothing other than our lives. I am telling you all this so that you don't forget. It's important to not forget the past as you draw the outline for the future that we color with the present. I know that it sounds confusing, but please never forget the past. You will use it as markers for your life so that you can look back and see how far you have come. This is my fairy tale. I wrote my book, I am the main character, and I am the hero of the story. What hero doesn't have to face a few villains and problems along the way? Page by page, I will read my story. Chapter by chapter, I will grow from my story

As for your career, I don't have much to say here because I can't keep my mind straight. One minute I want to do this and the next minute I want to do that, so I'm leaving this part of advice up to you. I have no idea where I will end up. All that I ask is for you to make me rich!

As for love right now, I'm a hopeless romantic. That's neither good or bad, it's just who I am at this stage of my life. Maybe in the future, I will be totally into the "single life." That's up to you. However, I doubt it. Right now, I'm already searching for that girl and I hope that she is right in front of me. For whatever reason if it isn't the girl on my mind, please make sure that she makes you as happy as you want to make her. If she needs you, be there. If you need her, she had better be there. Make sure that you two can not only laugh, but also cry as you go down the path of life together. In 15 years, you probably have developed so much and you deserve so much. Don't let that go to waste. I know that in the past four years I have grown so much as a person. I could barley lift a barbell, hold a conversation with a girl, crack a joke, go outside, or even learn to take things in moderation. I need you to know that, before you find love, you must follow these steps. Love yourself, keep moving forward, never forget who you were, and never stop dreaming of who you want to become. Little kids are happy because they can dream about their futures, so why can't you? My mind is my whiteboard and I will fill it with all sorts of colors and drawings of today and tomorrow. Then, I will let you find love.

All in all, I hope that I become happy. I hope that I end up with the girl who I am crazy for. I hope that I hit platinum in League Of Legends. I hope that I get a job or you are going be a bum. College is tough, but I know that I will get through it like everything else, day by day. I can't wait to meet you, big brother.

Take care and I will see you soon.

Sincerely,

Mike

P.S. I get a puppy in a month and I hope that it's a German Shepard.