Hey.

As I, the current version of you, type this in a Starbucks with a high-pitched band in my ears, I can’t help but mull over everything I want to tell you. Do I want to talk about boys, about friends, about the future you’ve made for me, about the future I’m making for you, about the life you have now that’s so outrageously different from what you once pictured, or about how you’ve changed in good and bad ways? I don’t have enough words in this lifetime - or at least as a college student with exams every week, it feels like - to talk about everything with you, but I’ll cover the important stuff, I promise.

You’re going to be alright. You’ll make it out of that little town where nothing ever happens. You’ll end up liking it more than you’d like to admit. You’ll find yourself at a university studying something you love, or at least love at the moment. And you’re not sure if you’ll still love that major ten years from now, but you know you love it now and that’s all that matters right now because it’s that passion that keeps you going even though college is really fucking hard. Dude, college is truly something we weren’t prepared for, but I promise you’ll get the hang of it.

I know right now you think you have friends that you’ll have for the rest of your life, but I hate to be the one to tell you that they aren’t going to always be there. You’re going to screw up a lot and lose some people really close to you, and you won’t think that it was your fault. I’m probably the best person to tell you that you really should take a lot of that blame. But don’t think that you can never be friends with them ever again. Don’t think that just because you don’t see them every day or every week or every month, they aren’t friend-material. Guess what, that’s just something that happens as you grow up. Friends drift and sometimes it’s not anyone’s fault but make the effort, dude. Text them every now and then. Ask them about their days. Don’t text them to tell some crazy college story about you. Call them. See them when you’re home. Make that effort. Just because you don’t see them doesn’t mean they can’t be a close friend. Technology didn’t advance to this point for you to be too selfish to text someone first to ask about how they are. Seriously. If I can be best friends with someone who lives across the country, then you can stay in touch with your friends from home. Don’t mess it up like I did. And if you do, don’t be afraid to swallow your damn pride for once and be the one to try and fix what you’ve lost.

You know that boy in high school? The one you swore you loved? Or for that matter, any guy you ever thought was “The One”? Forget him. Forget them all. Focus on yourself. There’s something it took me forever to realize, and it was that you should learn to love yourself before anything else. Focus on you. Stop wasting your time on guys who can smooth talk or who can drive (which is seriously not that impressive, trust me dude). Put yourself first. Focus on your own grind. Improve yourself for your own sake. Don’t do it for anyone else but you. Be the best you that you can be. Pursue your passions. Learn how to wing that eyeliner sharp enough to draw blood. Learn how to put your thoughts into words and then learn how to put them on paper. Learn about politics. Learn about current events. Learn about things that matter to you. Learn about things that interest you. Never stop doing that. Never stop trying to improve yourself. Be happy with who you are and who you have the potential to become. Everything will fall into place from there. You’ll feel that self-confidence you never thought you’d know. You’ll find the friends who will be there during your lowest lows and your highest highs. You’ll find someone who makes you happier than words can describe. You’ll find a career you’re passionate about. You’ll have a future that’s worth all of the hard work you put into it. You’ll be just fine.