letter to my 13-year-old self.

Dear Melina,

There are so many things I want to tell you. So many things I wish I knew when I was 13 years old. Things I wish I didn't have to learn the hard way. And if I could take all your misery away with the wave of my magic want, I would. Or...actually I probably wouldn't. We turn out pretty okay.

You're going through a huge transition in your life, and you probably don't even notice it. You have just gotten your first phone. Be careful not to use all your limited text messages, dad gets furious when he sees how much you go over. I know 1,000 text messages isn't a lot, but you gotta deal with it for now. Technology gets better, I promise.

You're starting freshman year soon, and luckily you're still the innocent kid. I know you roll your eyes reading this line, but you don't know how true it is til you're older. I know, I know, I sound like an "adult" by saying you'll know when you're older, but you've got a lot of life ahead of you.

You don't care much about what you wear. It's great that you put comfort over anything. That will change to some extent, unfortunately. You will go through many different styles, but there is one thing I would tell you to avoid wearing. All those Aeropostale hoodies with the brand logo across your chest! They're not as cute as you think they are. Another thing, even though mom doesn't let you buy Hollister or Abrocrombie, don't get mad, their clothes are overpriced and not that special. You'll get over it, and actually be thankful that your mom didn't make you one of those kids.

Onto the next topic, the friends you have now, aren't forever. It will hurt as you lose some of them, but that's life. People drift away, gain different interests, and that's perfectly normal. You will be pleasantly surprised by those who stick around and are always by your side. They're the realest, and never question why they're your friends. You will also meet some amazing people in college, and gain one best friend by the end of it.

You always try to people please and make people like you, it's not worth it. You end up becoming more unhappy and go through a lot of hurt along the way. It's something I still struggle with occasionally, but I promise you, people will like you for you. Those who don't? They honestly don't matter. I know you hate the thought of someone not liking you, but no matter how hard you try, NOT EVERYONE IS GOING TO LIKE YOU. It's life. You aren't going to be everyone's cup of tea.

Oh yeah, on a lighter note, you like tea now & coffee actually. You go through phases. As of now, I'm a fan of both, depending on my mood.

In terms of romantic relationships, you're not going to be that person who falls in love once and that's that. Sadly, you're going to get hurt quite a few times. Not so sadly, you're going to learn a lot from each heartbreak. Not only about what you want in a relationship, but about yourself. You are stronger than you give yourself credit for, and you will get through it. Don't worry though, you will find someone who's amazing and accepts you for you, and it will all be worth it in the end. Like people say, you gotta kiss a few toads before you meet your prince. 

While this letter is getting extremely long, there is one thing I do wish we got up the courage to do earlier, make that blog and YouTube channel we always wanted! Stop putting it off. We don't end up creating a blog until our senior year of college, and it's just as amazing as we thought it was going to be. And...Youtube? We still don't have that mastered yet. We were consistent at one point, but life got in the way, so we just stopped posting. Don't worry, I'm not giving up on it just yet.

Babe, you go through so much in life, but there are a few things to remember. They are not the end of the world. We do get through it, while hard at times. You are stronger than you give yourself credit for. Not only that, but you are also smart, pretty, creative, and worthy of all the happiness in the world. Never forget that. Reread those few sentences a few times until you believe it. And, whenever you're feeling down? Come back and reread it again.

With all the love,

Melina-at-age-24 xxx