Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge Day 6 #HAWMC
Day six of the WEGO Health Activist Writer’s Month which I have signed up for – a month dedicated to the art of writing about health. Today’s prompt:
Write a letter to an older you. What do you want to ask yourself? What lesson do you want to make sure you remember?
Darling girl,
You are so caught up right now in studying for exams so that you will get to university. Don’t worry, you will make it! But, it won’t be quite what you were expecting. Now you are top of the class in school, but just wait til you get to college – girl you are in for a bit of shock. You won’t be top of the class anymore and this will shake your confidence. But remember, this life’s early winners often fall away. Your time will come.You have talents that will lie undiscovered for many years, because you judged yourself by a rigid standard of IQ. EQ is yet to be written about..but you are developing it right now.
And don’t worry, it won’t all be studying – you are about to meet your first serious boyfriend and he is going to be lovely. Although you will break up two years later, you will remain friends, and he will always be a special part of your life. You won’t believe this, but you are going to leave this special guy for someone else, a tall, dark, handsome stranger (yes, they really do exist in real life) who you will fall madly, deeply in love with and plan to spend the rest of your life with….except it won’t work out that way. He will break your heart and you will think you will never love again. You will..but it will take time for you to find your Mr Right. And here’s a tip, he won’t be what you expect at all – he won’t be tall, or dark, but he will be kind and generous and he will make you laugh and he will stick by you through some very dark times.
Ah, the dark times..I wish I could save you from them..truly I do.
Now take a look at yourself in the mirror…You are so young and so lovely and the tragedy is you don’t realize how beautiful you are. I know you are pleased with your figure, if not your face (you think it’s too chubby – but you will wish to have that fullness in your face back again believe me!) but make the most of it now, because see those perky breasts – you will lose one of them in later years to breast cancer. Yes, breast cancer. It’s incredible isn’t it, to think that you will have to face something only older women get (you’re wrong there!) when you are still a young woman. But, don’t be afraid. It will be a tough road, but you will find a strength you never knew you had to get through it and eventually it will take your life in a whole new wonderful direction. Just you wait and see.
Now, comes the hardest part to tell you, yes, even harder than cancer. I wish I could prepare you for what it will be like, but I am sorry, there is no way to prepare you for it. Your Mum, who you fight with now like all teenage girls, the one you take for granted, and who doesn’t understand you (or so you think) she will become your best friend. She will see you through relationship break ups, lovingly nurse you through cancer, and be there for you unfailingly and with unconditional love through many of life’s ups and downs. You will discover a deep love for her and when she dies your heart will be broken. You will feel a pain so deep you will think you will never survive it. So please treasure her as much as you can right now, tell her you love her, ask her more about her life, you really will regret it if you don’t. I don’t know if you will ever get over losing her, but I do know one thing though, you have come through tough times before, and so I want you to hold on and know that you truly do have the strength you need to get through anything that life throws at you – even if it won’t always feel like it.
Oh and one last thing…stop being so serious about everything. Right now you have so little to fret about..right now, life is just one big adventure waiting to happen – be fearless and grab all the opportunities you can.
Live courageously!
Love
Me xxxx
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Thoughts On Today’s Challenge
I really hesitated on today’s challenge. Every time I thought of the 16-year-old girl that I was, I felt sad for all she was going to have to face in her life. I wanted desperately to save her from all the pain she would have to go through. I really found this exercise very hard to do. I left out a lot of what I wanted to say, as silly as it sounds, I didn’t want to scare her too much.
I was touched by your post Marie, and we could all write similar letters. I love to see young, fresh-faced laughing teenagers who think they know it all, and wonder how the years will treat them. Imagine how your guardian angels felt when you were born. They knew what your future would be,the lessons you have to learn, and they were given the job of standing close by your side, invisible but doing their best to protect and guide you on your path nonetheless. Fondest love and courage, Christina xxxxx
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What a beautiful comment Christina – thank you xxx
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Oh Marie, you last paragraph was so moving. These letters are so hard to write. How telling that is. Please give that 16 year old you a huge hug. What a fine woman she is now. Audrey xx
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Thank you so much Audrey x
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Some of your BEST writing, Marie! Like a mother talking to her child, though that child is you all grown up and being kinder to herself now. Am glad you found the not necessarily tall and dark but very wonderful man who has stayed with you through dark times. xxoo
Rachel
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Thanks Rachel x
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What a great post Marie and how lovely it is to see you writing to your teenage self. When I went to my sisters home last week for the holidays I was talking with her saying “Can you imagine ten years ago if I told you what happened with our family, would you ever have imagined it would be this?”. It is so special for you to open up about your life and what has happened. I just reread the part where you talk about the dark times and I was very touched the way you spoke about your mum. You remember to tell your younger self to stop being so serious about everything. I think that is great advice for all of us in the present too. So is ” life is just one big adventure waiting to happen – be fearless and grab all the opportunities you can.” I agree with Audrey that you should give the teen and your adult self a bug hug. What a fine woman you are! xx
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Thanks to you Susan, I have just re-read my own comment about not taking everything so seriously again and realized that it’s a lesson I need to keep reminding myself again and again!
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Oh, Marie, this made me cry. I remember one of last year’s prompts was to wrote to ourselves lessons we have learned over the years. It doesn’t get any easier as the years pass, does it? Thank you for opening up your heart so much to us. I’m sure it’s therapeutic for you. We love you very much. xo
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Dearest Jan, sometimes I have a momentary pang when I hit publish – thinking i have revealed too much, so reading a comment like yours takes that pang away xxx
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Well done Marie. Your lovely, caring spirit shines through. 😀
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Thanks so much Teri
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What a beautiful post, Marie! I recently found a photograph of myself when I was 15 and I hung it over my desk. Sometimes it breaks my heart to look at it; sometimes I am exceedingly grateful for all of the layers of life since then.
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I wish I could give you a hug right now! That was great task for sharing xo
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In some ways though, I think being 15 and 16 were the toughest years ever – I’d hate to have to revisit them!
A lovely letter Marie and yet it reminds me that in many ways, I’m glad we don’t have crystal balls to see into the future xx
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You know which part of this beautiful letter was my favorite: the part about your mum. xo
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I loved this letter, Marie. I teared up about the part on your mum. So much is revealed in this letter to your younger self; it’s really amazing how carefree one’s life can be as a teenager. And yet, it’s difficult to be a teenager. Thank you for a beautiful post.
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