Dear 16-year-old me,

Hello, it's me. Well technically, you. Let me start off by saying, you are doing good, kid. Things at this age are not easy but you are holding on pretty well. You probably are wondering what your future looks like, but I am here trying to give you some advice so that you can have the best future possible.

First of all, take your schoolwork seriously. I know you think that the things you are learning right now are easy and completely irrelevant to your life but they really are not. All of these grades are going to determine your future in college with scholarships and automatic acceptances into programs. With that being said, please stop stressing about your future because everything you think that is going to happen, will not. You will not even figure out what you want to do with your life until you are in your second semester of college. You will know you made the right choice when the classes related to your major make you feel like the happiest little nerd ever -- and school has never made you feel like that.

Do not quit dancing. That is your passion, your emotional outlet. You are not realizing it now but dance has gotten you through every situation that you thought was going to ruin you and shatter your world. So while you are on stage at each competition now, take it all in. Do not take it for granted. You will miss the feel of adrenaline as you are creating a story on stage (or in your case probably "attempting" to be cool during a hip hop routine -- you do you girl) and you will miss the feeling of practicing five days a week and how that hard work paid off when you win a national title (for that exact hip hop routine).

Now let's talk about your friends. You do not have that many right now, but that is okay. You are kind of good on your own. The few that you have, though, are probably not the ones that will be in your life for a long time. Toward the end of your senior year, you will meet the people that you should have spent all of high school with. They get you and your weird sense of humor. Once you all go off to college it will be different, but you will meet your people at your university. These are the type of friends that will pick you up off the bathroom floor whether you have tears running down your face from a boy who hurt you or you are leaning over the toilet after a rough -- but fun -- night swearing that you will never drink alcohol again (you will). They will always be there for you and make sure that you never feel alone. You will go to bed feeling blessed for the friends that God has given you. You really do not know what good friends are until you get a little bit older.

Do not fight with mom and dad. Seriously, they just give you advice because they love you and are trying to make sure your life turns out perfectly. They are right about every person they said was not good for you. Actually, they are right about everything. The older you get, the older they get and they will not be around forever. You are going to miss them nagging you about little things and wanting you to go out in public with them. Just go. Cherish this time with them. Give them a hug every day and tell them how much you love them and appreciate everything they do for you. They are the greatest parents you could have ever asked for.

Here's the piece of advice that I really need you to listen to closely. This boy you are dating is not good for you. He broke up with you the day after you turned 16 and guess what? Over the next three years, he will break up with you two more times, solely for the reason of wanting to be with other people. You know the pain he causes you. You know that he makes you feel unworthy of true happiness. That is why I need you to be strong. I need you to leave him. Please. Coming from an older you, this relationship is toxic. Yes, you may think you love him. Yes, you may think you are going to spend the rest of your life with him, but you will not. He causes you way too much pain, emotionally and physically. He toyed with your mind so much that you developed anxiety but if you leave him now you can save yourself from that. You know you need to; deep down you know it is not a healthy relationship. But he made you feel like you cannot do any better. Let me tell you. You deserve so much more. It will be hard to move on, but you will find a boy who never wants to see you do anything but smile, will hold you tight when you are not smiling, and especially one who will not leave you standing out in the cold when he decides he wants to leave over and over again, knowing that you will take him back each time. As Cristina Yang said, "Don't let what he wants eclipse what you need. He is very dreamy but he is not the sun. You are." Do not settle.

Last but most certainly not least I want to let you know how beautiful you are. Inside and out. Your way of thinking is so out of the box it is remarkable. Your heart is gold and that can be dangerous because people can and will walk all over you, but it is also a wonderful gift to have. You deserve happiness. Hell, you deserve the world. Anyone is lucky to have you in your life and please never forget that. If someone wants to leave, it does not mean that you were not the right person, it is just that only the ignorant let the best go. People who have you in their life are so blessed to have someone as caring, genuine and funny as you. Just keep living your life and do not let things bring you down, especially not at this age. The best is yet to come. I promise.

Love,

You