Talking to Myself

December 21: Future self. Imagine yourself five years from now. What advice would you give your current self for the year ahead? (Bonus: Write a note to yourself 10 years ago. What would you tell your younger self?)


Dear Jane in 2010,

"Patience," she said.
Stop worrying so damn much. Really. It's all pretty much the same...just in different ways. Real...but not normal.

XO,
Jane - Infinitely More Wise in 2016


Dear Jane in 2000,

Girl, we need to have a heart to heart. And I need you to listen to me very carefully, alright? What I have to say is important. VERY important.

Yes, N8 did just move in and you already know it's not right. Everything, in fact, is wrong. You're going to go with your gut - you usually do. Don't second guess yourself. You are right. And you're totally not going to play it cool because you are not, in fact, cool (no matter what your mom says), but, in the end, you will know for certain you did the right thing. Know too, that as bad as you are going to feel about that situation, 2 things are going to happen...A) you will (eventually) make peace with each other and know that he did love you even though you both fucked this up pretty bad and B) he will also, the last time you see him, give you your very first completely unaided (by you) orgasm of your life. And? Trust me when I say Oh. My. Gawd. So much so that 10 years from now you're going to continue to think about that night and go Oh. My. Gawd. Seriously.

Now. About that mistake of a job you've got. In just a few months, you're going to get a new one, a better one, in a somewhat familiar environment, making better money than you've ever thought possible! I promise this is true. This job? This job will (eventually) save you. You will leave it - in time - but by the time you do? You will realize it helped to set you free.

So, here's the really hard part to tell you. The next couple of years...they are really REALLY going to be rough. I'm not going to tell you what happens. You're going to have to discover that for yourself. What I want for you to always remember is that this rough patch? It does not last. You're going to take some pretty drastic measures, have a practice run at a mid-life crisis, and then? Then you're going to set yourself free.

After that? I'd love to tell you it's smooth sailing. But it's not. What I will tell you is that after that? You'll be ALIVE! And you are going to experience things you've never imagined were possible and discover things you never knew existed. You are going to learn so much! I can't even begin to tell you how much.

There is happiness ahead, Kiddo. There is so much love you're not even going to know what to do with yourself and all the love coming your way. It's OK to be angsty now, to feel imprisoned now, to isolate yourself. It's not going to be this way forever. I promise.

With all my love and sympathy and compassion and enthusiasm,
Jane In Her Infinite Wisdom 2010

PS In a year or so, you're going to get hooked on Joss Whedon's Firefly. It gets canceled. Don't be shocked, k?