Dear 19-year old Janae,
Once upon a time, there was a girl who thought she wasn’t enough. She didn’t think she was pretty enough, cool enough, smart enough, and any other thing she could be “enough” in; that girl was you.
I write this letter to you 8 years into the future to tell you that YOU ARE MORE THAN ENOUGH!
First things first, as you can tell by the 27-year old version of you above, your fashion sense will improve DRASTICALLY. Fear not. lol
You will always be a work in progress and there’s nothing wrong with that. What’s wrong is if you never make any progress. No one is perfect, but that doesn’t mean you can’t continue to strive towards being the person you want to be, no matter how old you are. You will continue to make mistakes, but don’t be too critical on yourself.
Everyone makes mistakes, just learn from them, build a bridge and get over it; No pity parties allowed!
When you experience that “first love” break up, don’t let it actually break you. Believe me it’s not the end of the world. It will take you forever, and I mean forever to realize this, but sometimes being single is truly a blessing in disguise. One day you will realize that what’s meant to be will be. There are plenty of fish in the sea..PLENTY! If someone doesn’t like you or want to be with you for whatever random reason, that’s their problem not yours. DO NOT CARRY THAT WITH YOU.
Learn to be considerate when it matters. Everything isn’t always about you. Be more giving, live to serve others less fortunate than yourself. Be selfless. Remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day; even as I write this letter to you I’m still working on being more considerate. It comes with time, don’t rush it. Just keep the faith, one day the selfishness will be a distant memory.
Now this one may be a tough pill to swallow so I need you to take your time on this one. Girl, while your problems are just as real as anyone else’s, your problems are not as dramatically horrifying as they appear to be. I beg you..PLEASE STOP making mountains out of mole hills!! The history test you failed last week will be an insignificant event in your life by next month, I promise. Your precious feet will be able to rest one day and you will get a car. You’ll get a man again one day lol. None of it is that serious. Once again, no pity parties allowed; after awhile they will get old.
You may not choose to go the planned medical school route, but you will succeed in ways you never could’ve imagined. Everything will work out.
Lastly, always love yourself. Be confident and ambitious. Continue to be your silly and creative self. Never let any obstacle let you lose sight of who you are.
“You is kind. You is smart. You is intelligent.” -Kathryn Stockett
Don’t you ever forget it.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
