An Open Letter to My Childhood Self- Rough Draft

Taylor Harris

Professor Cox

English 111K

11 September 2016

An Open Letter to my Childhood Self- Rough Draft

Dear Childhood Self,

        I hope you are having the time of your life throwing that slinky down the stairs, listening to cassette tapes, and treating your cabbage patch doll like a newborn. I also hope you are playing with your polly-pockets and overflowing the bathroom sink from making a “pool” for them to all swim in. Your parents will only yell at you for a little while, so it is worth it. Cherish all of these moments. In a blink of an eye you will be driving yourself to a job interview, attending the college of your dreams, and learning how to pay bills. At this moment you are living the life. You may wish to grow older for the few luxuries, but trust me when I give you this advice. You have more luxuries now than you will ever have in the future.

        At this time, you are probably three or four years old attending Preschool Partners. You love it here and think it is a playhouse because of the activities you are involved in. When your grandma drops you off at school you’re going to run away to all of your little friends before she can kiss you goodbye. Let her kiss you goodbye. You will soon grow to miss her hugs and kisses. She will always be the one you can call if you need absolutely anything. Your little friends from preschool will be around long enough. Have fun finger painting, making holiday themed crafts, and chasing the boys around the wooden play area. Sooner than later that playground will be taken over by kudzu and all of those boys will hit puberty and grow unattractive mustaches. I hope preschool is a blast for you! Make every minute count. You will soon be attending Bunn Elementary School where there will be no more finger painting or kisses from your grandma. Take advantage of the little things.

        You are now growing older, little one. Today is your first day of Kindergarten. Your mother has pulled your hair up in the highest pigtails you could imagine. Everyone thinks you look so adorable wearing your pink mini skirt with a coordinating monogrammed t-shirt. This year will be full of emotions- mostly from your parents. Let them be emotional. You are the first born and because of thatyou will be seeing a lot of firsts that include emotional parents. Your time in Kindergarten will consist of learning your ABC’s with giant blow-up robot men that kids love to throw around, writing your name a gazillion times in notepads with the wide dotted lines, and having a nap time. I know you are not going to sleep during nap time, but I am here to tell you, you are going to wish you did. Have a ball on your field trips to the pumpkin farm and the zoo. Embrace your orange, glittery pumpkin shirt with black and white polka dotted leggings. When looking back, thirteen years from now, at the many pictures your mother has taken of this field trip, you will want to relive this moment even if she had braided your hair to look like biker braids that morning. There will be no more non-educational field trips in your future. The rest of your elementary school years will fly by! You will meet tons of new people and have so many friends.

In third grade you will meet your very best friend. Her name is Elizabeth. At the time she has short, brown hair and the biggest smile you will ever see. There are going to be numerous sleepovers, shopping trips, and random adventures over the next few years. During your time in third, fourth, and fifth grade you are going to go boy crazy. This is the time girls figure out guys do not really have cooties. Do not waste your time on a boy. You are only nine years old. You will try to plaster your face with makeup, but really you are only making yourself look like a clown. The blue eyeshadow is not making a statement and neither are your knee high converses. It is time to start figuring out who you are and making a few decisions on your own. This is why you tell your mother no when she asks you if you want to get a bob as your next haircut. Just say no. You will regret it for the rest of your life. When looking back at your yearbooks years from now it will make a good laugh, but at the time just say no to save yourself from embarrassment. The fifth grade picnic is slowly, but surely rolling around the corner. This may be the last time you see some of your classmates when parting off to different middle schools. Everyone is wearing their “Class of 2009” t-shirts and you think you are on top of the world. Let your parents take pictures. They turn out to be hilarious throwback pics when it comes to your high school graduation and you are going to wish they took more. After finishing fifth grade and passing those dreadful EOG’s you are beyond ready for middle school. That may be just because there Is a slushy machine in the cafeteria. Everyone has their own type of motivation.