Welcome to Dear Teenage Me page

This project is something I started years ago, with the intention of writing a simple letter to my teenage self, with all the advice I wish I had known back then, when everything was upside down, felt completely bleak, and there was no light at the end of the depressed-teen tunnel. It has blossomed into these groups of advice pieces listed below, and is something I hope I continue to do, in written form, on Instagram (#dearteenageme), and in little video clips. Please join in. Email me or comment on my IG with what you wish you had known. I would love to hear it and share it.

Dear Teenage Me,

It’s me! You! You know, time-traveling from the future! (Yes, just like in our favorite movie, The Terminator. Only without the attempted murder and gratuitous nudity.). I'm here with some things that I wish I had known at your age. Some personal, some general, but, trust me, hon, all of them apply to you.

So, a coupla things first. The future is nothing like Back to the Future Part 2. For instance: no flying cars. The word “pimp” is a compliment. # is no longer a number sign or a pound sign. Teenagers are eating laundry detergent. Along with something called “swiping right,” all of this could seem like signs of the apocalypse. Nope! That honor falls to the family of one of OJ Simpson’s lawyers. Yeah, the football guy. Oh, hon, just you wait.

But, truly, know this, young me: holy crap, you have so much good stuff ahead of you…a life that is surprising and fun and full of adventure. True, there is sadness and loss (special things are fleeting, after all; that’s what makes them special)…the whole human experience. But, you will see the world and laugh a lot and find true love. (Oh, and at one point you end up on a national TV show ((twice)) but it is kind of a gross show. It’s something called “reality TV” which, as long as we’re time traveling, let’s figure out a way to stop that from ever becoming a thing, okay? Either that, or invest in it.) Anyhoo! Here are a few of them, toots. Good luck.

Dear Teenage Me,

1 Don’t be ashamed of your height, take it for granted, or wish it away. And stand up straight.
2 Just because you’re good at something doesn’t mean you have to do it. And know when to quit. Stubbornness is not conviction.
3 You get to say “no.” Listen closely to older you for this one, younger me: Your “No” is a complete sentence and an assertion of your humanity. Do not keep people in your life who don’t accept yours.
4 May you never get too old for pigtails. Or for t-shirts with pithy sayings on them.
5 Get to the mountains sooner than later. They’re home to you.

6 Your default setting might be to say no to new experiences. That might be the safer, easier choice. But, instead, try saying yes. Sometimes, just say yes.
7 What you pay attention to gets bigger and bigger; what you ignore gets smaller and smaller. So pay attention to and be thankful for what you have, not what you lack.
8 Show, don’t tell, people who you really are.
9 You will more than once find yourself trying to change someone. It doesn’t work. Do this instead: think first of the options available to you rather than the options available to them.
10 It is okay to be confident. Confidence can be sexy. Conceit can not.
11 All that judging and criticizing and complaining you feel tempted to do might seem fun, but it doesn’t serve you well in life. Plus, hate is just so, so unattractive.
More to come. Stay veracious.
-VV

dear teenage me

Welcome to Dear Teenage Me page

Dear Teenage Me,

Dear Teenage Me: Standing up Straight, Marriage, & Pigtails

Dear Teenage Me,

-VV

Veracious Voyager

Oh, the places you can find me!