To my dearest little sister,

If you ever come across this letter, please don't hate me. Please don't yell and scream at the top of your lungs telling me to take it down or remove it from the internet. Oddly enough, I'm doing this for your benefit. I'm doing this to help us maintain and improve our relationship as sisters, and to do that you must be exposed.

You can be a brat.

You can be one of the most bratty people I know. Sometimes you believe the world only revolves around you when, as a matter of fact, it does not. You like to believe you can get everything you want by giving Mom the "pretty please" or Dad the puppy eyes and trembling lip. I want you to know that when Mom says, "no" and Dad says, "not today," the world does not and will not end. Accepting the word 'no' is a tough lesson to learn. It's a lesson you have not yet learned but will one day practice.

You can be ignorant.

We are all guilty of this, especially in our childhood. As you turn into a young woman, you will realize that everything comes from something and that something usually is hard work. When you yell at Mom for not buying the right color dress for your next dance, or scream at Dad when he forgets to buy your special gummy snacks, it hurts them. They work hard to put food on the table and provide you the right clothing for school, and they only want you to be happy. When Dad does purchase those gummy snacks, and you don't even say thank you to his face? When you don't ever say thank you for anything he has done for you? That is ignorance.

You can be spoiled.

No, this one isn't exactly your fault. Being the baby of the family entitles you to a certain amount of babying, but your time is running out. Soon you will be in my position: you will be a college student. When you go off to your school you will realize very quickly the real world does not work around you, you work around the real world.

I'm sure you feel as if this is to bash and hate on you. I assure you, it's not. You have lots of positive traits too. In fact, I would say for every negative about you, there are three positive things I love about you.

You can be funny.

You can lighten up a room with your smile, and when in need of humor you always seem to come to the rescue. Your jokes may be corny and silly, but it never fails to put a smile on anyone's face.

You can be kind.

At the end of the day, you put others before yourself. I wouldn't go to the extreme to say you are selfless because that's an extreme adjective you need to work hard to earn. You definitely know when others are in need, and you go to their rescue. You have that gift when comforting others. You make them feel safe. That's an amazing quality I hope you don't lose. You have the aura that people are drawn to because of your personality and who you are, which, for the most part, is a kind, genuine person.

You can be smart.

This is the part where I wish I was like you. I wish I excelled at school, sports, or anything, really. That's all you, baby sister. You put in the work and you get the outcome you want and deserve. Your intelligence will take you to great places, but you still must learn how to use it in every situation.

I hope you noticed something. I started every sentence with you can be because you can be anything you want. You can carve your own path and you get to choose how to live your life. You have an amazing support system behind you including your friends, family and me.

I will be there for you when you get heartbroken for the first time or when you are trying to decide between colleges. It gets tough, but I know you can do it. I know because you can do anything you set your mind to. I believe in you.

With lots of love and all the support in the world,

Your big sister.