First Birthday as an Adult
When the movie Tangled first came out, I was only 7 years old. That's why I thought that Rapunzel had every right to do whatever she wanted. She was 18!
And I was usually the same age as the protagonist of most Disney movies/shows. Now I'm at the point of my life where I am definitely older than them -- and I can't even call myself a 'teen' anymore. That's just... weird. The more I think about being an adult, the less I know how to take it all in.
But today, I've been receiving a cascade of warm birthday congratulations and gifts. I feel blessed to know that people think of me and care for me. And I'm not just talking about my friends -- so many teachers congratulated my birthday and told me that I've grown into a wonderful adult. This made my heart melt :)
And what was also sweet was my birthday cake! This year, I took the liberty of baking my own cake instead of just buying it at a bakery. It was a vegan cake (not that I'm going vegan but I wanted to spice things up) that didn't require an oven. No flour or sugar was used -- only dates, honey, and almonds. There's a Korean Youtuber who shares amazing recipes and every time I make something of hers, it turns out to be delicious. Here's the link for the cake I made, in case you want to try it yourself!
The cake turned out to be delicious. The strawberry cashew filling was sweet and creamy. Mix that with the crumbly almond-date crust, the texture was perfect. The colours were amazing, too!
One totally unexpected gift was from, well, me! I completely forgot that I wrote a letter to myself a few years ago and scheduled its delivery for today (if you want to try it out yourself, you can go to FutureMe).
I thought I would share at least some parts of the message — it was too funny to keep it for myself. If you click on the arrow below, the email will expand! Do note that this was written by a girl in her teenage years, so it can be a little ✨dramatic✨ at some points.
14-year-old Elysia's letter to 19-year-old Elysia
Hi! I'm you, just 5 years ago.
I'm not sure how much I would've changed, but I hope I lost all my baby fat and grew into a gorgeous lady like I always dreamed of. I also hope my face cleared up, and I'm still getting outstanding grades from the subjects I am taking. Did I do well in IB? Am I going to go to a great university?
Anyways, I'm having a great life now, with my fantastic grades and friends. Of course, there's a girl who drives me crazy, and another one who is just the worst person in school, but other than that, I'm really happy.
My current relationship with my mom is stable and great, unlike other girls who seem to hate their mothers, and my dad is, well, an absolute charm as always. Grandma's great, too. (though I don't say it, I love her very much) I hope she's still healthy as ever!
Oh, house the new home? (see what I did there? Pun master!) (I am so gonna regret this. can't have anyone seeing this) Am I lovin' it?
Are you still writing stories? Did u publish some? (ha, as if!) And if you're not, YOU BETTER!
Are you still a superstar? Did Mrs M visit during your graduation??????? Are you still contacting Mr W?
Are you seeing anybody? Did you remain a single lady? Any thought of campus romance in university? (shoot. now I sound like ___!)
OMG!!!! I can't wait till you read this! I wrote another one, probably about 2 years ago, but I can't remember when it was going to come back to me.
I hope I forget I wrote this, or else it's not going to be any fun waiting for it. *swoosh*
That's was just the sound of my brain deleting the whole thing.
Btw, did dad get u a new phone? Or are u stuck with the S8?
Oh, before I end, I wanted to tell you this. No matter how hard it may seem, you should keep smiling. Because the world's a dark place, and someone ought-ta smile and make it brighter.
Do this again!
Lots of Love, Elysia (me/you/whatever)
*names were censored for privacy reasons
My response to younger me
Hello, 14-year-old me!
I wanna sound more adult-like but I'm too overjoyed by the fact that your letter was delivered to me that I can't keep my composure so you'll have to understand my giddiness :)
Honestly, I think I've grown into a rather elegant young lady like in those classic novels you always enjoyed reading (I'm gonna go with 'not yet' for the baby fat, though 😂). My face is much better now, especially since I don't treat it too harshly with strong topical creams. Being gentle with my skin has helped me to go a long way. But there's definitely more to you than what meets the eyes of most people -- and that's usually expressed through your witty writing!
I'm still the one to have a sparkle in my eyes whenever my English teacher tells us that we're going to be doing some creative writing. Your clever craft of words seemed to have improved further and allowed me to write a great essay for college applications that really show who I am as a person. So thank you for telling me not to stop writing!
In every subject I take, I have been getting 'outstanding grades', as you put it, but I must tell you that it's my passion for those subjects that makes me special. All of my teachers appreciate the way that I have an intrinsic motivation to do well and to help others. Those are qualities that I hope to keep on honing.
Unfortunately, your timing wasn't the best so I can't tell you about my IB exams or how graduation went, but I can tell you that COVID wasn't all bad when it came to reducing exam content 😉 Also, as Head Girl, I'll be giving a Valedictory speech at our graduation. If you're wondering what university I'm going to, it's Swarthmore! They accepted my Early Decision application. At the time of your writing, you were probably only thinking of applying to the UK but I can tell you that life takes its own turns and I ended up applying to the US only. Guess you never really know what lies in front of you!
One of the perks of growing up is that there's a lot less tension/drama between friends. I still remember everyone being emotional and sensitive about everything back when we were in Years 8 and 9. I'm not saying that it's all rainbows and sunshine now but people have matured enough to not get upset at little things. And anyway, you meet a wonderful friend in Year 10 who you can consider a friend for life.
My family's better than ever, everyone healthy and COVID-free :D The 'new' house that you mentioned is not the newest, since we moved once more to a quieter house that isn't an apartment. The view is spectacular here!
I'm not 100% sure what being a 'superstar' entails, but yes, you're still loved by your friends and teachers and I'm quite literally working as the 'face of NLCS' (seriously, being the Big 8 means publicity). Thankfully, I've grown to enjoy being that person.
Glad that the mind wipe worked, 'cause I had no clue that this was going to be delivered! I think the one I wrote even before this one is going to arrive a little later. I'll probably write one about being an adult and schedule it to be delivered sometime in the future.
And thank you for the reminder to smile. I have seen what it can do and how being positive can fill my own life with energy as well as influence the people around me. It's a wonderful feeling, to be at the centre of all these positive emotions.
I love her (me). I realised that my flair in writing was already in full bloom back then -- especially for my love of puns.
Even though I am legally an adult, I still feel like a child at heart. I like my ability to still look at the world in an optimistic way and I wouldn't trade my imagination and zealous attitude towards life with anything. I'm still going to take everything as a new adventure.
Here's to a new chapter in my life :)