Younger Me,
As you laugh and play so innocently and unaware of what life has coming, there are so many things I wish I could come tell you. So many pieces of advice I would give you, so you could look out and avoid situations. I’d also whisper courage to you when you had to much fear to take the chance. Always take the chance, don’t let fear make the choice for you.
When you turn 18, you will finally understand that and face a fear you never thought you would conquer, roller coasters. It won’t be one of the small coasters either, you will get on the one that drops you at a 90 degree angle twice so your face is parallel to the ground you are plummeting towards. It’s going to flip and twist upside down, and at this point I’m pretty sure you are going to laugh and assure yourself that it isn’t going to happen and you would never even put yourself in line for that ride. I promise you, the best part of that experience is after the 2 minutes of you facing your fears, the rush of adrenaline that will come and the need for that feeling again.
If I could tell you to not fall for that boy your junior year of high school, I would. He’s going to decide he doesn’t want to be with you, but wait a month before he tells you that, while simultaneously still being in a relationship with you and act as if nothing is wrong. He’s going to be a boy, which isn’t even half of the man you’ll meet when you graduate high school. That man is going to show you that they may be rare, but good men still exist. When I tell you that when you sit in that hospital room with your dying grandfather, your whole life will change when you say goodbye, I am not saying that lightly. It’s going to hit you so hard and I wish I could prepare you for that moment.
As you get older, you’ll just want to keep having birthdays and growing up. Learning how to drive and gaining more independence to getting your first job and gaining a sense of responsibility. They’re all going to be great accomplishments, but don’t rush through life. People will always tell you to never grow up, and you aren’t going to realize it until you have to adult every day. Take it from 19 year old you, enjoy that the only thing you have to worry about is what outfit your American Girl doll will wear next and what Hannah Montana episode is on today. When you have work, bills, and college you will look back and wish you had slowed down to enjoy that time.
There are so many things I wish I could come whisper in your ear and if I had the chance to, in all honesty, I wouldn’t tell you anything I just wrote above. Those experiences are what you need to become the person you are going to be.
The heart breaks are going to make you stronger, the jobs are only temporary to get some money in your pocket, high school is only 4 years and you don’t have to deal with those people forever, and don’t forget to count your blessings, because you should know you’re too blessed to be stressed. That’s probably all I would ever want to tell you, and I know that you’d want to know more, but secretly you want to see life for yourself and I’m not going to ruin that.
There is one more thing you need to know, have patience. Honestly, you still haven’t fully gotten that concept at 19, so let’s hope the future us has that quality. Enjoy the ride through your teenage years my friend, and it may get bumpy but that doesn’t make your beautiful life any less of a blessing.
Xoxo, 19 Year Old You
