Dear Me,
Sophmore year will breeze by so take in every moment as if it’s the last. You have a great group of friends, stick by them because they will be the ones to lift you up on the hard days. You’re going to experience your first homecoming week, pep rally, and maybe get your first car.
Some advice is to be careful who you choose to date. Never date anyone who it could be awkward seeing all the time after a breakup– cause that’s just uncomfortable for everyone involved.
You will experience loss and sadness in overcoming grief. Your story may be different than others at this point in life, but your story will help so many on their own personal journey later on. Don’t pray to have a different outcome. Don’t ask to have God change your story, ride it out and you’ll be thankful later.
Junior year will be the best year yet! Life will seem easy and carefree. However, school is getting more challenging and you stress every test you get. Wondering why you aren’t as smart as most of the other kids. Wondering why it doesn’t come easy for you. And wondering if you’ll ever have a breakthrough moment.
Enjoy every dance competition, every early morning practice and every chance you get to be with the people you love most. Looking back now I wouldn’t change a thing. Put your heart on your sleeve. People will break it, but it will build you in the process. Dance hard to every song at school dances. Laugh loud and tell jokes with friends during class. Put your whole self out there, even if it’s scary. Even if you’re scared they will judge you… they will, but it’s only because they are scared of being their true selves.
Everything will seem right with the world as a junior. You have love, a good life at home, school and with friends. Be prepared for it to all shift. But don’t let it break you. You are valuable.
Senior year will hit you like a rock. Going, going, gone. Your heart will break- dare I say, shatter. But, you will build it back up, piece by piece. Allow yourself time to heal. Feel the hurt and then move on from it. Don’t dwell. Seek the clarity you deserve and demand respect from everyone.
You are going to need to take a shift. A pretty big shift, rocketing you into a more confident, happy, kind woman. You will learn how to take the positive out of any negative situation and come out on top. Don’t judge anyone, because you never know what they are going through.
Senior year you will build new friendships and put some on the back-burner. You will laugh harder than you ever have in your life and appreciate the good times. Life is crazy and throws curve balls and you’ll learn that.
Rumors will start because if people don’t understand something they will make their own version of what happened. I wish I could tell you that your friends won’t believe those stories, but it’s not the case. However, remember that in these difficult times of great shifting you are growing into the person you are meant to be.
Be your own hero. Fall in love with yourself. Everything that you are praying to end differently will work out. You will find a great love, the kind you are praying for, the kind you dream of. You’ll find that love sooner than you expect, but when it hits, you know.
I know it doesn’t seem like it now, but everything will be okay. Everything will end the way it’s supposed to. Just remember that high school is complicated. You go to a new school with new people and new friends and try to find where you fit. It’s messy and confusing.
Listen to your heart and you’ll make it out the way you are supposed to. Never forget your worth and never, never settle. Everything you dream of, you’ll have. Keep pushing forward. Continue to pray for those that hurt you. Never give up on tests or homework. Allow yourself to grow and change as needed. Staying where you are comfortable will never get you different results. Kill ’em with kindness and trust me… you’ll thank me later.
All my love,
Your future self