Dear younger me,
           You probably have those days when you are sitting and wondering what the future will hold for you in the years to come, and to be completely honest, I do not even know that answer myself and I am already nineteen years old. You were the little girl who put on her tights and little pink ballet slippers, and danced on chairs. You are now a young lady who is going through life, taking things one day at a time, and admittedly dancing in your dorm room while extremely stressing over things that life has handed you. Oh how the time flies! There are a few things that I have learned along the years that I think you will find worthwhile.
“I know this transformation is painful, but you’re not falling apart; you’re just falling into something different, with a new capacity to be beautiful.” – William C. Hannan
You might not be close to your brothers now, but trust me that all changes.
Yes, you and your brothers do not get along all of the time but don’t give up on them. You will eventually learn that they have become not only your closest friends but also your biggest fans. They will always be there for you whenever you need them, no matter the distance. You will grow up to have more in common with them, and I hate to admit it to you, but you will miss them when you are at college.
“Brothers are like streetlights, along the road. They don’t make distance any shorter, but they light up the path, and make the walk worthwhile.” – Anonymous
If you don’t know what you want to do with your life that’s okay.
You are being asked by your teacher in grammar school, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” You typically answer “A ballerina, a baker, or a teacher.” Well let me just say that none of these things seem to be true. You are now finishing your spring semester of your freshman year of college and are still trying to figure out your life. You have yet to take a course in your major and you also want to add a minor. You will learn that it is okay not to know exactly what you want to do with your life. College is for discovering the person that you are and for finding your interests, passions and much more. In life you must try to stay focused on the moment at hand rather than being so concerned about the future.
           “Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment” -Buddha
Sometimes people are not always who you thought they would be.
I have found through the years that many people come into our lives, but not all of them are here to stay. You may not understand this now because you have been going to the same school with the same people, but take my word on this one – people do change and they do go. As you get older you will realize that people come into your life for a reason. Whether this is for them to stay, or for them to ultimately go, that is for you to find out.
You will understand that people are brought into your life at the exact moment that you needed them. Whether you were searching for them or not, it does not change the fact that they are there. This person may be the complete opposite of you, but in ways balances you out and makes you think a little harder about life then you have before.
Do not be quick to judge people when first meeting them because you are not aware of what they have gone through in life and the reasons that make them who they are. I can tell you from personal experience that you should take the time to actually get to know someone, because in the end you will not only enjoy their company, but also realize that while looking back your life would be so different without them. You may not be looking for someone, but inevitably they will come. The circumstances may be strange, but while looking back at how you met with that person, you will both just laugh and talk about how you didn’t things were going to end up the way that they are.
           “Sometimes people come into your life for a moment, a day, or a lifetime. It matters not the time they spent with you but how they impacted your life in that time.” – Anonymous
Things don’t always go the way you want them to, but eventually things will work out.
You will more than often want to control every little thing that happens to you. The problem with this is that it is not possible, because everything changes. As much as you try to plan out every little detail of your day, this will typically not be what actually happens. You must learn to go with the flow of everything that life hands you.
Everything happens for a reason, whether you realize it or not. You will get your hopes up in many instances, just to get them let down. But do not give up on the person who let you down, or give up on yourself if you let yourself down once in a while. Do things that will get you to where you ultimately want to end up in life. Be able to hold on to the fact that everything will work out eventually, even if it may not seem like it will at the moment.
       “Go with the flow. Force nothing. Let it happen…Trusting that whichever way it goes. It’s for the best.” – Mandy Hale
My last words of advice for you:
·     Don’t let life pass you by, live in the moment.
·     Realize that even if you are having a bad day, it does not mean you have a bad life.
·     You may hate naps now, but trust me, you’ll wish you had more hours in the day to catch up on sleep.
·     You don’t need anyone’s approval. You don’t need to explain yourself to anyone. Live your life and always do what makes you happy.
“I knew who I was this morning but I’ve changed a few times since then.” –Lewis Carroll
“If you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.” – Ronald Dahl