A Letter to the Past
May. 8th, 2009 04:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
syzygy_dwI am ganking this from a another forum I hang out on.
Stephen Fry wrote a letter to his 16-year old self, and one of the forum members asked what we would write to ourselves, if we had the chance. Here is my response. I've polished things up a bit, and added one or two things that I thought of later, because I originally wrote it at one in the morning.
Dear Heather,
Greetings from 2009! Here's a bit of advice to make the next 17 years so much easier.
First off, get a math tutor. Summer school sucks, and you will hate it so much. Admit that you're having a hard time, and get the help you need. Also, try not to get Mr Ishmael next year. He's a fun teacher, but you've already had him for the past two years, and I suspect his teaching style is part of the problem.
Also, learn French. I know you're taking French in school, but we both know those classes are crap. Try to practice it outside of school. Make more Francophone friends, watch more French TV. Focus on your written French as well. You won't live on the West Island forever, and being bilingual will make things so much easier. On the same note, get your driver's license now. You may think you'll do it later, when you're not so busy, or when you have more money. But you never will, and one day you'll be me, and still taking the bus. Knowing how to drive is one of those skills that may not open a lot of doors, but not being able to drive will cause some doors to slam in your face.
Please know this: Wendy is not your best friend. Best friends do not treat each other like that. Ditch her. That girl is fucked up, and she will try to make her issues your issues. Until you are THIRTY YEARS OLD. She will find subtle little ways to cut you down so that you are as miserable as she is, and you will never be able to make any decisions about your own life that do not somehow revolve around her. For every nice big thing she does for you, she will do a hundred small mean things, and you will spend your life trying to avoid setting off the powderkeg that is her temper. She will sap your energy, without you even noticing. She is not your responsibility. You can't fix her, and you can't save her from herself. Trust me, you are better off without her. There are people in your life right now who want nothing more from you than your friendship. They care for you for who you are, and they will be lifelong friends. Hold on to them, because they are great people.
Speaking of friends, become friends with your brother. Yes, he's a shithead. He's 13. All 13-year-olds are shitheads. But he's a good guy, and when he's 30 and you're 33, you're going to wish you had more to talk about than Star Wars and your crazy parents.
Become friends with your crazy parents, too.
Don't worry so much about what other people think, and have a good time doing and wearing and learning and reading and loving whatever you like. Don't let other people talk you out of your passions, and don't be afraid to try something new, just because you think other people will laugh. They probably will. They don't matter.
I know you are getting over a broken heart right now, and you think things are pretty shitty. Here's something to put that all into perspective: Go the McDonalds next to your high school right now, and be on the lookout for a boy with white hair and a giant chip on his shoulder. In eleven years, you're going to marry that boy, and he will make you happier than you can ever imagine. You both have a lot of growing up do before you get to that point, and you're not supposed to meet him until you're 26, so be patient. All the other boyfriends you will have will be a prep course for your life with him, so don't take them so seriously. Or rather, take them seriously, but don't be so devastated when your relationships end. Yes, your heart will be broken again, more than once. But you'll see. It will all work out in the end. I promise.
See you in about 17 years.
Love,
Heather
PS: You are going to love the Internet.
What would you write to yourself? What advice do you wish someone had given 16-year-old you?
Stephen Fry wrote a letter to his 16-year old self, and one of the forum members asked what we would write to ourselves, if we had the chance. Here is my response. I've polished things up a bit, and added one or two things that I thought of later, because I originally wrote it at one in the morning.
Dear Heather,
Greetings from 2009! Here's a bit of advice to make the next 17 years so much easier.
First off, get a math tutor. Summer school sucks, and you will hate it so much. Admit that you're having a hard time, and get the help you need. Also, try not to get Mr Ishmael next year. He's a fun teacher, but you've already had him for the past two years, and I suspect his teaching style is part of the problem.
Also, learn French. I know you're taking French in school, but we both know those classes are crap. Try to practice it outside of school. Make more Francophone friends, watch more French TV. Focus on your written French as well. You won't live on the West Island forever, and being bilingual will make things so much easier. On the same note, get your driver's license now. You may think you'll do it later, when you're not so busy, or when you have more money. But you never will, and one day you'll be me, and still taking the bus. Knowing how to drive is one of those skills that may not open a lot of doors, but not being able to drive will cause some doors to slam in your face.
Please know this: Wendy is not your best friend. Best friends do not treat each other like that. Ditch her. That girl is fucked up, and she will try to make her issues your issues. Until you are THIRTY YEARS OLD. She will find subtle little ways to cut you down so that you are as miserable as she is, and you will never be able to make any decisions about your own life that do not somehow revolve around her. For every nice big thing she does for you, she will do a hundred small mean things, and you will spend your life trying to avoid setting off the powderkeg that is her temper. She will sap your energy, without you even noticing. She is not your responsibility. You can't fix her, and you can't save her from herself. Trust me, you are better off without her. There are people in your life right now who want nothing more from you than your friendship. They care for you for who you are, and they will be lifelong friends. Hold on to them, because they are great people.
Speaking of friends, become friends with your brother. Yes, he's a shithead. He's 13. All 13-year-olds are shitheads. But he's a good guy, and when he's 30 and you're 33, you're going to wish you had more to talk about than Star Wars and your crazy parents.
Become friends with your crazy parents, too.
Don't worry so much about what other people think, and have a good time doing and wearing and learning and reading and loving whatever you like. Don't let other people talk you out of your passions, and don't be afraid to try something new, just because you think other people will laugh. They probably will. They don't matter.
I know you are getting over a broken heart right now, and you think things are pretty shitty. Here's something to put that all into perspective: Go the McDonalds next to your high school right now, and be on the lookout for a boy with white hair and a giant chip on his shoulder. In eleven years, you're going to marry that boy, and he will make you happier than you can ever imagine. You both have a lot of growing up do before you get to that point, and you're not supposed to meet him until you're 26, so be patient. All the other boyfriends you will have will be a prep course for your life with him, so don't take them so seriously. Or rather, take them seriously, but don't be so devastated when your relationships end. Yes, your heart will be broken again, more than once. But you'll see. It will all work out in the end. I promise.
See you in about 17 years.
Love,
Heather
PS: You are going to love the Internet.
