27 Things I'd Tell My Younger Self
Or, birthday post
Today is my 27th birthday. To absolutely no one’s surprise, I am a Virgo.
26 was a good year for me, on balance. The years preceding it were challenging in ways I never could have foreseen, and this year, the challenges were a lot more…foreseeable. I powered through. I adapted. I managed. Unlike 23-25, when I found myself at the mercy of my destiny, frequently feeling like there was no way I could pass through the gauntlet, this year I always knew I would. Maybe that’s my frontal lobe developing, maybe that’s the universe giving me a break before my Saturn return—who’s to say, really? Regardless, I’ve learned a lot, not just this year, but in all the years. So here are 27 things I’d tell my younger self, in honor of turning 27.
The world is much bigger than the people who are currently triggering your feelings of sadness, anxiety, and inadequacy.
Go ahead and meet your heroes, actually. Yours have all been pretty great.
Half of your problems will be solved if you just stop looking at your phone.
You are a Sim. Feeling generally terrible feels complex and elusive but in fact you might just need to drink a glass of water, take a shower, and talk to someone you love on the phone.
Doing things to take care of your community are worth it even if there is no immediate or obvious reward.
Congratulations, you are not the ugliest girl in the world. Nor are you the most beautiful. Doesn’t that take the pressure off?
Makeup is arts and crafts. Go play.
It doesn’t matter if they love you if they make you feel afraid.
Being an entertainer is your job. Meaning: you are allowed to clock out. Meaning: you do not have to earn love by being entertaining.
You feel the safest in your family home surrounded by the people who raised you. This is your biggest and most sacred privilege.
Making new friends is a lot easier than you thought.
Stop trying to make yourself understood to people who have already decided to misunderstand you.
Constructive criticism is a form of love. The people who are criticizing you are only doing it because they know you can be better and they want to help.
Nothing—writing, driving, sex, cooking, playing with a band—is ever good on the first try.
SOCIAL MEDIA IS NOT REAL LIFE.
You look better with a middle part.
You should probably take a break from men from New England but you probably never will.
Never do anything for the approval of anyone but your five-year-old self and your seventy-five-year-old self.
Kevin is right. Make the gratitude list.
Never take your health for granted. It can and will be stripped away from you overnight and you will spend the rest of your life trying to adapt.
You do not have to tell everyone every single thought in your head. You would benefit from keeping some things to yourself.
Say yes to jobs that intimidate you. You’ll figure out how to do it when you get there.
Being the hot guy’s decorative trophy girlfriend is satisfying for about twenty minutes. Then you will start to lose your mind.
Wear your retainer.
No dream is too big with the village you are going to have around you. They will stop at nothing to make your wildest wishes come to pass—join them.
You stop feeling lonely and inadequate the second you stop focusing on who left your life and start focusing on who stuck around.
The light may never burn you but it can kill you in the end. Wear sunscreen.
You do look good in a middle part. Happy birthday Virgo angel!
“Wear your retainer” called me out, personally