A Letter and a HUG to my 16 Year Old Self

Dear Sixteen Year Old Me

I know life sucks right now, because over 20 years later I still remember all of it. The pain, the hurt the sadness.

So, I'm writing to tell you that you are loved. That no matter how alone you feel right now there are people that care about you. If I could I'd give you a hug, and tell you that things will get better.

If you can hang on for another year, you will find a wonderful friend and she will be your confidant for a long time. While you may grow apart, you will always keep in touch via email and Facebook {which hasn’t been invented yet}.

I’d also warn you about a girl, mean as hell, that will pretend to be your friend, but she will betray you, and pull everyone else in on her game. Don’t fall for it. Be strong. And if you don’t heed my words and you still take the pills, know that you will survive and that you will be here tomorrow, because life has so much to offer you. I know you don’t believe me, but it’s true.

I know you cry yourself to sleep at night wondering why you don’t have a boyfriend, but trust me as you get older you will realize that boys are nothing but trouble. Once you can love and accept yourself, you will find the love you deserve. You don’t need to be anyone’s doormat.

And I’ll let you in on a secret. One day you will meet a man that will make you feel special, and you will marry him and have two lovely children. Hopefully now that you know this, you won’t look for love in all the wrong places.

You are so smart, even though you may not know it yet. And even though Mr. R told you that without Calculus you might be flipping burgers, the truth is HE WAS WRONG!!! What you need to learn is how to write and create, because that’s where your passion lies. Don’t try to be pre-med you will only fail. Just because you like helping people doesn’t mean you will like taking Chemistry in college. You should follow your dream of being in advertising even if it means wearing gold and red.

One day you will drive just fine {maybe a little fast} even though you flunked your driver’s ed test twice. Don’t worry no one in real life knows how many feet to stop in front of a stop sign.

I know school isn’t your thing right now and you plod through each day just longing for the comforts of home. However, it will be over soon and you will soon be at college, which I hate to say wasn’t the greatest either. But it will make you stronger, it will make you wiser and it will make you know what you want out of life. These experiences will be hard no doubt about it, but you are so much stronger than you think you are. YOU CAN DO IT!!! And you will succeed. You will live these experiences so that you can tell your children about them, and hopefully they will listen.

Oh, and make sure you watch out for that fly ball in PE class, because that shiner hurt like hell, and almost got you a free nose job.

And while I may give you all these warnings and try to guide you on a different path, you will most likely choose to do what you want. Which is fine, but know that you are loved no matter which path you choose.