Dear former self,
If there was any way I could write you a letter and send it back to the past, I would probably make you angry. That’s because I wouldn’t tell you anything you really want to know, like what major you’ll declare or who you’ll hang out with or whether or not you’ve met your future husband yet. Instead, I’d give you a lot of advice about how to brave your next few years in college, just like I would for anyone else. Because honestly, there are a lot of things I wish I would have realized earlier, and they’re probably a little more valuable than how your social life is going to look in a few years.
I’d tell you that you shouldn’t take yourself too seriously. Don’t get me wrong: you should take the things that matter to you seriously, and you should stand by your values and try your best. But face it, you’re young. You’ll never get some of the opportunities you’re given now ever again. So while it is important to work toward your goals and do well in school, it’s also a time to try new things. It’s a time to do stupid things. It’s a time to fail, even though it’s hard and sometimes scary. Believe it or not, but I think you find yourself through failure more than you will through success.
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I’d tell you that sometimes college is messy, even when you swear you’ve got your head on straight. You’ll make a lot of mistakes. You’ll lose friends. You’ll have your heart broken every now and then. And guess what? It won’t be the end of the world, and you won’t regret it all as much as you think you will. People are a lot more resilient than they give themselves credit for, and even though it’s unpleasant now, you’ll make it out okay.
And you know, it’s okay to not know what you’re doing. As cliché as it is, most of us really don’t, and if someone does, the chances that everything will go as planned is slim. It’s hard to come to terms with the fact that your life is essentially directionless sometimes, but embrace it. If anything, it just opens up more doors to what you can do. You’re life is a blank slate, and you can fill it with anything you want. It’s daunting, but it’s also sort of wonderful, isn’t it?
So take chances, even when they scare you. Especially if they scare you. Get out of your comfort zone and try new things. Meet new people. The fact of the matter is that we’re given an average of four years in this environment. We’re here for an education, for the chance to prepare ourselves to go out into the world and begin our professional lives, but college is so much more than just homework and tests. You have four years to make mistakes, to make friends, to make memories. So make the most of it.
Love always,
Your future self
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