More than a year ago, someone made a call for letters to their 10-year old selves. I made the following letter and saw a different side of me with it. I wasn't able to submit it but here it is for those who may want to read...
Enjoy!
=)K
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Mermaids are lonely creatures…
Hello, mermaid. You’re ten years old now, and the vast ocean is right there for you. Wide-eyed and innocent, the depths are full of wonders to explore. Before you begin your journey, listen to someone who has been there and back again.
I am you twenty-six years from the time you are reading this.
Right now, you are feeling quite alone. I remember that. I remember the other girls picking on you in school. It’s not easy. Those tears you shed are real and some people think you’re just acting out. Most adults think it’s a shallow thing to cry about.
Don’t worry. It will all be ok. Remember that.
More than anyone else around you, you will be telling that to yourself. No one else will understand you the way you do. In time, some will come close, but that will take quite some time yet.
People will try to tell you what to do and you will wonder if you should trust them. Ah, but that’s a dilemma I still wrestle with until now. But, you know what? I have found out over the years that there is one simple principle underlying the answer to that question: do what you know is right and good.
But then, here is the kicker: doing what is right and good isn’t always easy. That is why you have to learn. And learning will not always be a happy thing to do. Sometimes it comes with great pain. After all of it, you have what you’ve learned, and no one can take that from you.
You know what else no one can ever take from you? Yourself. You as this person who has so much to give. You as this person who can love like no one can. You as this person who has so much to offer if only people just stopped and took notice.
So no one is looking just yet. That’s just fine. Sometimes, being lost in the crowd has its advantages. When you’re invisible, there are things you can do. Just remember that you have to do what is right and good. In time, people will see that. In time, they will notice that. And all you need to do is be your good self and be patient.
The tides will come. The undertow can drag you off unexpectedly. The reefs will change. And all you know will turn into something else. It’s just change. Everything changes, just as you do. Take stock of what you have and what you are: you are a special mermaid.
So swim on, and swim proud in being yourself.
PS. No, I won’t tell you what will happen to you. That’ll spoil the fun out of your journey.
