Dear me,
You had a big year. You fell in love with new places, felt the warmth and excitement of new friendships, experienced lost, experienced success, opened up, felt hurt, felt joy, created, and did things you didn’t even know you needed. This year was colourful and eye opening and really everything you had hoped for.
I know you have a vibrant list of all you want to accomplish this year, and the turn of 2017 has you itching with excitement, but for a moment, just let that list take a back seat. I have only one lesson I want you to hold onto for the New Year.
There is room for you.
There were patterns this year of you trying to squeeze into a too small imaginary box for everyone else’s sake.
Please, don’t bring yourself down to make others feel better. That helps nobody.
If you’re to lift others, you can’t do it from underneath.
Please, don’t stuff your dreams out of embarrassment of them being too outlandish.
You were made a dreamer, make good use of it.
Please, don’t sing quieter because you’re scared people will think your voice is obnoxious.
It’s yours, use it the way it is.
Please, stop reverting to small talk out of fear of making people uncomfortable.
Be bold enough to have those big conversations.
Please, stop getting half way through a story and ending it with “anyway” or “sorry”. Will you stop making yourself feel unimportant?
If you believe everyone else is important, you certainly are too. Please, don’t be scared of your truths.
Look inside for the answer, don’t look for clues in the face of the asker. It is not your job to devote your energy into dodging people’s disappointment. That’s an impossible task.
This year, promise me one thing?
Be unashamed. You’re a daydreamer and a night thinker. You’re a storyteller and a loud singer. You can care about other’s wellbeing without putting yourself in a position of responsibility.
There is no shame in feeling big and bold. The world is a great place, thirsty for creativity and expression. I promise you, there is room.