by REAGAN MOTSINGER
Dear freshman me,
I gotta tell you, you have it easy. This has been quite a year for me; you have no idea what stress feels like, honey. You thought one AP test was bad? Try four. Not to mention essays, projects, driver’s ed, job applications and thoughts about college. The pressure is most definitely on.
Some days I do miss being you. Your life was pretty simple. Now I’m constantly running from place to place, frantically trying to finish homework and get to all the different places I need to go. I miss the simpler times that you symbolize, even though you are, you know... a freshman.
You won’t believe what’s happened since I was you. I’ve become even more of a nerdy fangirl, if that’s even possible. Despite what you might’ve said, I care about superheroes now! That’s a whole other story, though. Being a nerd totally isn’t what it’s stereotyped to be, though; it’s actually a way I connect with some of my closest friends. We send each other tons of memes, and then we suffer through AP classes together the next day.
On the latter side of that, I think you’d be proud of the year I’ve had. I got my license and officially gained a more significant position in Dance Marathon and the thespian troupe. I survived calculus, for goodness sake, and I got a state award for French! I’d also like to say that my fashion sense has improved (If you don’t believe me, compare this year’s prom pics to your homecoming. You’ll see that it’s true.) I made some new friends and got closer to some old ones, so yeah, I’d say it’s been a good one.
Now, looking to the future, I have one year left. One year left to get my life together and figure out who I am. Do you have any idea how terrifying that is? I suck at deciding on anything major. I mean, I know I can change my mind if I make a wrong choice, but this amount of pressure is stressing me out.
It’s crazy to imagine what your dreams are. I’m sure my aspirations have changed in the two years since I was you, but I can’t really be sure. There’s so much that I remember, but also so much that I don’t. Remind me: do you have any ideas about what you want to see in your future?
If you don’t know, that’s alright. I don’t blame you. But can I give you some advice?
Don’t fixate on everything at once. If you do that, you’ll just stress yourself out more, and then you’ll never get anything done. Simplify your list down into concise tasks for the immediate future, and then just get to work. You’ll be surprised how much faster you get things done, and then you’re way less stressed out.
Stop worrying about what other people think about you. I’m still occasionally guilty of this, but I’ve generally perfected the art of being unapologetically me. Other people don’t get to dictate who you are, so stop believing that they do. You’re you, you’re great, and that’s enough.
High school is not like “High School Musical.” Do I really need to explain that to you? I think you can use logic to figure that out, but I’ll save you some time by just letting you know now.
I’ve grown and changed a lot in the last two years, so I know there’s hope for your awkward disaster-ness (not that I’m that much better). Trust me, kiddo, you’ll survive this. Embrace the possibilities!
Love,
Reagan <3
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