If you could write a letter to your self from the age your are now to the 18 year old person you were.. what would you say? I have lots of advice for the younger me.. Not that I would have listened !!
Dear Dilly,
Hello and a Happy 18th Birthday. Time sure has gone fast. It wont be long till you are 40 something and you will be looking back and saying to your self "wow how did I get that old? ". Yes you will, and I know you don't believe it, and that 40 something is along way off but it will sneak up on you and bite you on the not so tight derriere that that comes with age.
At 18 you will think you know everything. You will have so many hormones flying around your body that you will be a walking oestrogen robot. The pimples will disappear in time I can assure you, and I can defiantly say, take care with what you are shoving in your mouth. You may be able to eat anything now and not put on an gram of weight but believe me.. this will NOT continue. Sorry to be the barer of bad news ! Salad salad and salad !!
As a child of the 1980's I can understand the clothing choices you made ( with the help of mum ) but now that you are in the 1990's.. please re consider that terrible perm your mum puts in your hair..it is not attractive !! You look like a poodle gone wrong.
Please also understand that socks pulled high to you knees over track pants is not a fashion choice I would recommend. I do not know where this idea came from, but please please reconsider before you attempt this again !
Love..yep.. that 4 letter word. For an 18 year old I can guarantee you will have your heart broken with many more times to come. I realise at the time you will think your relationship will last for ever and you will live happily ever after with a white picket fence in la la land but girl.. it ain't going to happen!
It will hurt like hell when man number 1 brakes you heart into a zillion pieces but I can also guarantee that it will get better and you will meet another..and another..and oops.. another until you feel like you are destined to stay a spinster the rest of your life with your many animals that have encroached into your bed. Never fear.. you will meet someone again many years later who you knew at 18 and the rest will be history.
As for the knowing everything. .. lets get back to that. You DON'T know it all. Hard to believe I realise, but you don't !! You should listen to your parents while you have the chance. You should concentrate more on school instead of a social life. You should trust that you are smart enough to achieve anything.. not hide away behind a veil of inadequacy that I still tend to put up.
You should understand that life will not just come knocking at your door.. you will have to get off that toned 18 year old bottom and go looking for it! Yes it will be frightening and you will get plenty of rejection but it will work out if you persevere and believe in your self. Don't make the same mistakes I, as a 40 something year old you have done.
Do recognise your skills and make the most of them. Don't take all that is handed to you as the only way. There is more out there for you.. don't loose sight of that.
Remember to be a good friend. I know we all will have lapses of this at times but the friends you have already made will still be in your life for years to come. Remember them fondly and dont let those that bullied you as a teenager win by still letting the memories of them hang out in your mind to then pop out and frighten you at times.. They aint worth it.
Don't loose the love you have for animals. Cherish everyday you spend with your beloved horse as the day she passes will fill you with a loss never to be filled... enjoy her. Enjoy the little creatures that make their way into your heart. Remember all they give you.
Now I know you would at this stage much rather wipe a baby possums bottom than a baby's, but I can promise you it is not as bad as you think. Your own kids.. yes you will have 2 boys.. yes boys..2 Feral beautiful active boys .. I can guarantee they will not smell as bad as other peoples kids and you will feel a bond never to be broken so strongly it will surprise you. Enjoy them, cherish them, even when they are driving you bananas and all you want to do is jump off the parent train... ( I can assure you they will follow !! ) they are for life, keepers and will teach you so much about yourself. Just remember to have copious bottles of vino on hand to scull at the most needed moment !!
So Dilly I am sure there is so much more I could say to you. So much more advice and guidance I could pass to you but in the end you will choose your own path. We, I am sure create our own destiny. Your success's and failures will help you grow into the person I am today. I am no where near perfect but I consider you will grow into a person that at the age of .. ok.. 42 .. is not too bad.
So enjoy the journey, absorb all it has to offer and Happy 18th Dilly..
Cheers Dilly xx
