Dear Me,

I’d like to start this off by saying that all of this advice comes from personal experience. I endured hard times because of my actions, and I want to change that for you. So, my first recommendation is: don’t be afraid to end a friendship with someone that is unkind to you. I know you may believe that if you stop being friends with that person, the rest of your friends will turn on you. However, there will always be new people to meet.

That leads me to my next instruction; do not be afraid to meet new people! Be confident in yourself. Otherwise, the hesitation that you are feeling will be reflected on the person that you are talking to, and it will turn them away from you. Just know that everything is going to turn out okay in the end, no matter if you end up making a friend or not.

On that note, you have to stop being anxious about trying new things. One of my biggest regrets is that I didn’t seize the opportunities that were handed to me. So, I challenge you to take risks. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you should do things that are harmful to yourself or others, but don’t be afraid to live a little. There may be a party that you are anxious about attending or the trip that you are apprehensive about taking, however these things will eventually end. You will be fine. Not every experience is a good one, but you won’t have any fun if you just sit at home on your computer all of your life. When you are old, you don’t want to feel like you have accomplished nothing, rather that you have lived the best life possible.

Another point I’d like to make is: don’t sweat the small stuff. If you forget to turn in your homework on Schoology or get a bad grade on a test, it’s not the end of the world. In fact, after a couple of days, you won’t even remember that these events happened. Still always do your assignments, but remember that a few mistakes won’t kill you.

The last thing I wanted to tell you is this: Stay true to who you are. Some people may not like the fact that you love Sherlock and Doctor Who or that you can name 4/5ths of all of the Harry Potter characters in 5 minutes, but it is important that you don’t lose your individuality. Just because nerds aren’t popular doesn’t mean that they don’t form an amazing community that you should want to be a part of. With this in mind, go and live your life the way that you want to, not the way that everyone else wants you to.

With this letter, I have two things that I hope for. First, I hope you have learned something from me, and that you take my advice to heart. More importantly, though, I hope that you live a better, happier life.

Sincerely,
An older, wiser you