To my 7-year-old self,
Youth is beautiful. Your eyes are filled with innocence and joy. Please stop counting down the days until you can drive like mommy and reach the top shelf of the cabinet. Enjoy recess and playing with your dolls.
To my 10-year-old self,
You're the oldest child. You'll use this to your advantage one day. For now, don't make it difficult when dad asks you to help with chores more than your 6-year-old sister. And when dad tells you that there are two more siblings on the way, please grin with excitement. You're going to love them. You're going to love how to be a role model, so please start loving it now. It gets less fun with age.
To my 12-year-old self,
No, you're not weird because you don't have a boy to dance with on a Friday night cafeteria dance. It's the seventh grade and everyone is weird. Don't use this time to bottle yourself up. Use this time to figure out who you are and who you want to be. Branch out and take chances. No one is watching if you mess up, but people can't help but notice if you never leave the sidelines. Take chances. This is just the beginning of the many opportunities you will have to grow.
To my 14-year-old self,
What you see in the mirror is something you will battle with for a long time. Food is not the enemy is and the size of your jeans is nothing to be ashamed of. There are much more important things. Do not succumb to trendy diets and the urge to throw away the bagged lunch your mom packed you. Take care of yourself. You have a long way to go.
To my 15-year-old self,
Heart break is hard, but this is not heart break. Take a breath and think before you speak. You are growing up in the bustle of technology, and everything you say spreads even faster on Facebook. Smile, be optimistic, and remember that high school doesn't last forever, and neither do most high school relationships. Life is not a Nicholas Sparks novel.
To my 16-year-old self,
When you take mom's van the first night you have your license, remember that it is a van. Not a Mini Cooper. You will hit that fence and she will get mad. Not too mad, though, and life will go on. Remember to be honest with your parents and to embrace responsibilities. You are still only 16, not 27, and life is not a struggle yet with your first minimum wage job. Spend your money wisely. You'll regret impulse buying all those tacky clothes later.
To my 17-year-old self,
College is an opportunity to recreate yourself. You are choosing a place to spend the next four (or five and a half) years to learn more about something you love. Do not listen to grandparents, teachers, and frenemies tell you that you should be a doctor instead. You have a goal and should follow it with all of your heart. You will hate the college you choose and you will want to leave. You will think this was a mistake until you realize that everything happens for a reason. It did. Stay bright.
To my 19-year-old self,
I am so happy that you are beginning to focus on what you love, want, and need. I am even happier that you are focusing less on what others seem to say, whisper, and assume. You are stronger than you think and will achieve all goals as long as you stay on track. Remember what you worked for and what you will continue to work for. It's a marathon, not a sprint. And yes, you will continue to hate running to begin with.
To my 20-year-old, and current, self,
Think about all of the lessons you have learned. There are notebooks full of phrases, suggestions, and cautions that you wish you could have traveled back to tell yourself. This is only 20 years worth. Imagine what else you will learn in the next five, eight, or seven years. Keep going.
Sincerely,
I haven't figured it all out yet, but I'm working on it.
