Letter to My Younger Self

Dear twenty-one year old B, First of all, you are doing great. Your dreams are not too big. In fact, dream bigger. Yes, you should leave that relationship already. No, it’s not the end of the world. The sun shines again. And I am glad you are spending a lot of your nights out dancing and making memories to last a lifetime. Here are some things you have probably heard before but needed to listen to; Love yourself. She's going to need you. And I do not mean the lazy love. Remember the ride-or-die typa love you were always so ready to give every one else? Yeah. You are going to need it for yourself.

No. Beyonce wasn't just in her feelings when she wrote, "Me, Myself and I." You will need to be your own best friend. That love will save you. It will take you places too. It will remind you who you are when the world's noise makes you forget. There will be a lot of light, but baby, prepare for the dark too. The world is dual. Hot-Cold. Love-Hate. Pleasure-Pain. Before you enter the adulting arena, you are sheltered from a lot of the dark. It’s great you are enjoying the sun. You will picture going to your dream job and seeing your best friends every day like they do in the sitcoms. But sometimes you do not get the job. Relationships end. People die and grief lingers. Bills put your passion in the backseat. The anxiety tries to win.

One of the tricks is to search for the center. The balance. The peace. Hint: You'll probably find it in God. Or the universe. Whichever name you decide to go with. Find your tribe. Find the people that nurture who you are. Realize I said who you are, not who you think you are. You will need a little bit more self-awareness for this one. By knowing who you are, you will discern which ones are aligned with your path. Life can break you and you will need people to hold you together when you cannot do it yourself. Take time to nurture these connections. Yes - Life will get busy. No - you're not too busy to send that text or call.

Change really is the only constant in life. Friends, jobs, loves, like seasons, will come and go. Connections wither, despite what they say. While others last lifetimes. Change can be a beautiful thing. And some changes are so big they will shake you. You will slowly learn the art of letting go. Enjoy the present moment. You know the saying, "these are the best days of your life"? It is not a lie. Every day you will wake up and seemingly finish yet another day. The next, you will be celebrating your 27th and reminiscing on the good old MUBS and Panamera days. Let your mind visit the past to return to cherished memories, and the future to make decisions, it does not have to live there. I could keep going, but you will figure out the rest. You do not need to know everything. That's what life is for after all, right? To live and to learn? Continue to immerse yourself in experiences, in people, in books, in things that set your soul on fire. Do not ignore that still small voice. There’s something it knows. They say intuition is always right in two important ways: it’s always in response to something and always has your best interest at heart. Eventually, you'll find your way back.