Dear older and hopefully wiser me,

Congratulations, you did it. You survived; who would have thought this day would come. The glory years that were high school, college and your twenties are now over but the memories created will last a lifetime.

I hope that with age you have stayed true to who you are. That you are still passionate, youthful and independent. That you have not failed to laugh at yourself a time or two. That the challenges you’ve faced in the past 25 years have made you stronger.

I hope that college was everything you expected and more. That your wedding day was your Pinterest dream-board come to life. That prince charming you imagined at eight is now your husband and he has far exceeded your expectations. That your definition of love has changed over the years but is still a paralyzing, indescribable feeling.

I hope the people that you are surrounded by are ones worthy of all you have to offer. I hope that you have learned to tell people you love them when you love them and tell them you miss them when you miss them. That you now realize how important life is. How you have to treasure every moment before it’s too late.

I hope that in the past 25 years you have stepped outside your comfort zone. That you have explored, traveled the world. Experienced the beauty that failed to be captured inside ‘dirty jerz’. That you jumped at every adventure and still took every unlimited chance you encountered.

I hope you realized that success can’t be measured in the size of your house, the number of vacations you take, the amount of Facebook friends you have or the salary you earned, but rather that success is a feeling. A feeling of accomplishment, a feeling that can only originate from within. The feeling that overcomes you when you realize you are capable of so much more than you imagined.

Nothing lasts forever and that is both a blessing and a curse. I hope that the heartbreaks have taught you lessons. That judgements have taught you acceptance. That goodbyes have taught you to treasure even the smallest of moments.

I hope that you attended every Girl Scout, high school, college and sorority reunion. That you are appreciative of the friendships lost, gained and maintained in the last 25 years. I hope that you’ve learned from the past, from every drunken mistake to sober apology.

I hope that bedtime is no longer 2 a.m. That you see the value in a good night's rest and that Mom was right all along about beauty sleep. I hope that the countless hours you spent worrying, overthinking or apologizing have now turned into hours of pride and celebration. I hope that you no longer consider jungle juice to be an acceptable beverage. That wine is not meant to come out of a bag. That a sufficient dinner is not easy mac. That breakfast consists of more than leftover cold pizza and sour patch kids. I hope that all the times you pushed 19-year-old you to go to the gym, to put down that last French fry and painfully lay off the diet coke have been beneficial. I hope that you feel safe to be yourself. To be comfortable in the one body you were blessed with.

I hope your closet is now filled with clothing investments. That with time you realized quality over quantity is true. That you can’t actually be "Forever 21." That the only place neon leg warmers, cut up t-shirts and disgusting frat sneakers belong is in the trash.

I hope you now realize the midterm paper you spent all night writing in college doesn’t matter. That the grade on your high school report card really was relevant. That the test you failed sophomore year is long forgotten. That procrastination is never the answer.

I hope you are generous as you recognized that receiving is nowhere near as rewarding as giving. I hope that you are thankful for every grounded Friday night, shopping trip with Mom or motorcycle ride with Dad, as you wouldn’t be where you are and who you are without them.

I hope that you still appreciate the pure perfection that is a New Jersey slice of pizza, the fact that you grew up in the state Springsteen calls home and that anyone who calls it pork roll instead of Taylor ham is wrong.

I hope that you have perfected the ultimate chocolate chip cookie, the balance of soft and gooey middles with slightly crisp edges.

I hope that you're letting Mom and Dad spoil their grandchildren for every birthday, holiday or ‘just because’ moment.

I hope that failure no longer means defeat, but rather is your motivation to do better. That asking for help no longer means you are weak and rather it’s a form of strength.

I hope that every difficult decision, every hardship faced, has shaped you into the insanely awesome person that you call yourself today.

I hope that you’ve found your place. The place that fills you with pride and happiness. The place that holds fights and forgiveness. The place that brings tears of sadness and joy. The place that you now call home.

I hope that cancer is no longer a leading cause of death. That the rates of suicide have declined. That generations today don’t consider dating to be ‘Netflix and Chill’. That a cure has been found for Autism Spectrum Disorder.

I hope you haven’t settled, for anyone or anything. I hope you know how much you deserve. I hope you know that you are more than you once believed. I hope that you have continued to grow, as reaching perfect is a never-ending destination, a non-existent place.

I am proud of you. I am proud of how far you’ve come. I am proud of every fear you've conquered and every doubt you've dismissed. I am proud of the limitations you surpassed and the determination that led you to fulfilling every goal you set. I am proud of the dreams you once deemed impossible to now be your living reality.

I hope you are beginning to see how truly magical life is.

I hope that you’re happy.