some solid multi-generational communication

This is a letter I wrote to a nondescript high school senior from 50 years ago. It's a good way to start all of this off, I guess.

Dear friend, 

50 years ago it was 1965 and I imagine you were asleep - at least I would hope you were. I imagine you might have your own record player - I have one that I haven't quite used, but I will - and I hope you own a lot of b-sides that make you happy to be alone, just enjoying the carpet and walls of your room and the sound of George Harrison or maybe Peter Paul and Mary. I hope you get more sleep than I do, but if you don't, I hope you spend every waking hour doing something that makes you feel more like yourself and not less so and I hope you savor the taste of being alive like salt, because it stings your throat but it makes every sunrise a little sweeter and that's what's really important in the end. 

I hope you've been to some good concerts and I hope you haven't made any mistakes that you regret too much - if you have, I hope you can still wake up and curl your hair and put on something beautiful and give the world back what it deserves, because I think learning to forgive yourself is a wonderful act of defiance. 

I hope you don't worry too much about your handwriting or the price of your shoes. I hope you remember that grades don't really matter and that you don't have to go to every football game, but that you still make time to go to some. I hope you're doing your best to enjoy your senior year, even though you probably wish you were on a bus on the other side of the world - I sure do sometimes. Remember that healthy portion of school spirit is never a bad thing and you may not look back through your yearbook and cry in 50 years, but you also might and it's worth taking a little extra time to learn the name of that one girl and be a friend to that freshman who needs you - those were my friends when I started high school and it meant the world to me.

I don't know if you have a boyfriend or if that's even on your radar, but I hope if you do he treats you well. I hope you remember that you deserve a hundred times better than you think, and the last thing you need is someone who lies to you or makes you feel like you have something to prove. If you're in a relationship that makes you cry without knowing why and you're losing sleep, I hope you can get yourself out and if you feel in any way compromised or manipulated, I hope you can have the strength to run as fast as you can because you are better than the people who belittle you and you mean more than a hundred jealous teenagers who don't know how to treat people who really matter. 

You really matter. 

I hope you're not too stressed about college. I know it feels like a seriously terrifying time crunch while at once dragging slower than your longest, lab-less Chemistry class, but I hope in these last few months you don't forget to be a teenager. I hope you can savor every second you have with the people who mean the most and I hope you can write all the impulsive, quiet and wonderful things down so you don't forget - they'll mean everything to you someday. And when you start to panic about growing up and losing this carefree adolescent freedom, I hope you remember that you are stronger than you think, smarter than you believe and braver than you could ever imagine. I hope you start each day with enthusiasm and finish each day with gratitude and that you never forget that you have a powerful voice and an incredible heart to contribute to this world. I hope you're never afraid to speak when the time is right, because I think that's the worst mistake we can make on this earth.

I believe in you. You are going to do incredible things. 

Love always,

Soph