Dear Younger Me

Dear Younger Me,

Hey, it’s Older You, just dropping by to write you a note and share some advice from the future. I’m here with a spoiler–you turn out alright! The problems that seem monstrous right now will only sometimes be truly monstrous. You will make {mostly} good choices. You’ll experience success and failure. You’ll figure out priorities by trial and error. But I have a few words of wisdom for you:

Be kind to all your friends.

You will need someone to call for a spontaneous Mexican date night or someone to text in the middle of a lonely, postpartum night, which will be a lonely you’ve never felt before. Make time to make new friends in every stage of your life.

Alcohol has its place in this world, but its place is not in your belly.

It will make you into an angry, sobbing, vomiting person you don’t like. Thank the Lord it didn’t take you much longer to recognize this.

Go ahead and feel that pain.

And go ahead and talk about it with someone else. They might even make you feel comforted and included.

Be kind to your mother.

Someday you will realize she’s doing all that she can do as a single mom in college and you should be kind to her. Get a hold of your hormone-raging self and be kind to your mother, for Pete’s sake! Someday, you’ll have two girls of your own. One word: karma. And you know what they say about karma.

He’s not going to call you back.

Be glad, Younger Me, be glad! Know that his lack of interest is not a reflection of your worth, it is only a reflection of his interest. Someone better is out there and I don’t want to give it away, but he’ll be tall, dark-haired, and intimidatingly handsome; he’ll be wearing an orange paisley shirt and brown shoes that say “Stand for something” across the bottom. You’ll know him when you see him.

Keep journaling.

You’re more emotionally and spiritually healthy when you journal. Keep journaling.

You are thin enough. Stop it.

You do not need to know how many calories are in a baby carrot and eating meat other than chicken will not do irreparable harm. If you want to focus on something, focus on proper nutrition and healthy exercise. Your outer appearance will always be changing. That cream on your pregnant belly will not prevent stretch marks, sorry Dear. But your body will do miraculous things—so take good care of it.

Work hard.

The big flaw you have and that you’ll have in 15 years is that you would rather not give it your all if the result isn’t perfection. You should try anyway. You’ll always be proud you worked hard; your disappointment will not be in the imperfection, it will be in the lack of trying and in the “I could have done that better if I’d just concentrated.” You’ll never regret working hard.

Rethink those student loans.

Really think hard about them. Get educated about student debt. Get another job! Pay for college NOW. You are lucky I can’t swear in this blog post. I would have thanked you ceaselessly for making this choice. WOULD have. Would have.

Do not be afraid of things that haven’t yet happened, of things you can’t control.

Just meet the trials when they come; meet them with prayer and courage.

Do not dwell on the things you could have done differently.

Make the next right choice for your marriage, your family, and you. It will be alright.

With love,

Older You

What advice would you give to Younger You? 

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