For those of you familiar with country music, you have probably heard the Brad Paisley song "Letter to Myself". Well, on a local internet forum, that I am a member of, a poster asked people to post a letter to themselves at seventeen. I have thought about this for several days now and I am going to attempt to do it now........right here....on my blog.......here....right now......okay, okay......here goes.
At seventeen, it is okay if you don't know what you want to be when you "grow up", most people still don't know the answer to that in their forty's. You don't have to go into business, just because your Mama tells you that is what you have to do. Follow your heart and do what you KNOW you are good at. Contrary to what some will tell you, you CAN make a living painting pictures and your photography is good enough so don't give up on that!
It is okay to keep being friends with that guy that has the curly hair and blue eyes. Yea, you know the one I am talking about. Make sure you stay friends because he won't be here in a couple of years and you will never get the chance again to tell him how special he was to you.
Yes, you will always be close to your brother and sister and the three of you will need each other a lot in the coming years and the closeness you enjoy now will get you through all of the bad stuff.......I promise.
You won't have those six kids that you think you want to have someday but, the three that you do have will fill your heart so full of love that it really will not matter.I am not going to tell you what you have (boys or girls) that will take some of the fun out of it.
When your Daddy disappears out of your life, remember that you did nothing wrong. Don't waste all of those years trying to figure out what you did wrong or could have done differently. Just continue to love him and let the hurt go. When you forgive and forget it allows you to keep the door open for him to come back. You just never know!
You are a better judge of character than you realize. The people that you think are your really good friends? They really are and they will continue to be your friends for the rest of your life. I promise.
Make sure you tell your Granddaddy Hartley how much he means to you. Give him extra hugs and soak up all that love he has to give you. All too soon he will be gone but, his love will follow you through the rest of your life and he will always be a presence in your life. Your Granny? Oh you will have her for many years and you will be old enough to know how important she is to you and she will know it!
That little voice you hear in your head? Yea, that one. When it tells you not to do something.....you better listen cause it will keep you out of trouble if you will let it. And, when it tells you everything is going to be alright? Listen because it is the truth.
Mistakes? Oh yea buddy.....you are going to make some mistakes. Some, are pretty big others not so much but, I am not going to tell you what to do differently. You need to make those mistakes because they are what will make you the person you are later in life. You won't be perfect but, you turn out pretty good if I may say so myself.
And last and certainly not least, that boy that you have had your eye on for so long? Well in a few weeks he is going to finally ask you out! You are going to fall deeply in love and he is going to hold your heart in his hands. There are going to be times that he may bruise your heart a bit but, he is going to hold it close and he is going to heal the bruises. He is going to become your best friend and those three beautiful children? He is the one that will give them to you. Your lives will not always be easy but, you will come through it all together and be stronger for it. You are going to hurt together, you are going to cry together, you are going to laugh together and well, you are just going to always be together!
Enjoy being seventeen because before you know it......you are going to be a forty-seven year old me writing a letter to your seventeen year old self.
