Dear Me,

Firstly, I would just like to say, do not be frightened.

The world is loud,

And fear will take many guises,

Headlines on the news, rumours,

And the slow ache of internal doubting in the early hours.

You will hear false prophets, spouting doom,

And pouring darkness into the origin of your light,

Do not listen to them.

They do not know the shape of your dreams,

Or how quietly hope grows within your gentle soul.

Follow your heart

It knows the way,

Even when the road ahead is shrouded in mist

And your steps feel uncertain,

There is a positive voice inside you,

Not loud, but clear if you listen,

Trust it.

Say yes more often,

To laughter,

To the dance you think you will look foolish doing,

To the unplanned detour that will lead to wonder,

To the hand held out in friendship,

Say yes, even when you feel a little unsure,

In fact, especially then, it will help you grow.

Remember that smiles open doors, whilst fear keeps them shut.

Be kind,

Not to just others, although that matters a lot,

But to yourself,

You will need soft days to recover,

You will stumble, don’t beat yourself up,

Be kind to the parts of you still learning how to show themselves.

Be open to new ideas,

To strange music,

To stories that don’t mirror your own,

Let life surprise you,

Let other people teach you,

Don’t judge others too quickly

And certainly, do not judge yourself too harshly.

Most of us are walking around trying to figure life out,

But some hide it better than others.

You will make mistakes and that is fine,

You will love wrongly,

You will lose things that you thought you couldn’t live without,

But you will live and discover you are better off than before.

You are stronger than you think

Softer than you are prepared to show,

And more loved than you will ever know.

Carry on,

With courage,

With compassion

With curiosity.

This world needs the you that you are becoming.

With love always,

Me.