Future You or Past You . . . which one would you rather talk to?

Robert’s daughter gave me a book for Christmas entitled “What I Know Now: Letters to My Younger Self”. It is a collection of letters written by prominent, successful women and edited by Ellyn Spragins. The writers include Maya Angelou, Cokie Roberts, Olympia Dukakis, Madeleine Albright, Picabo Street, and other wonderful women, and with each letter, the author writes to herself at a younger age . . . giving her younger self a piece of information or advice that she wishes she had known “then” or the encouragement to get through a coming hurdle. The book stuck with me long after I had finished reading it because of the concept. . . . I have had numerous turning points in my life where I would have liked to have had the wisdom of my future. Times when I could have used the older, wiser me to let me know things were going to be okay. The proverbial “this, too, shall pass” might have meant more coming from “future me” as opposed to well-meaning friends. I loved the idea of the letter . . . it seems therapeutic. I loved the idea so much that I sent the idea to my dear friend who is chairing the literary festival in my former state. What if . . . you got women who are successful role models in the state and community to write those letters and read them at a public forum with teen-aged and college-aged women in attendance? . . . could it provide encouragement? . . . could it give them a tool in their war chests to use when life comes at them full force? When I was younger, I never had an ounce of appreciation for the real lives of the women I viewed as successful. To me, their lives seemed charmed. They, obviously, did not wear their trials and tribulations on their sleeves for the rest of us to see, so I assumed the absence of difficulties. So many times, when I was struggling over the years, I considered myself such a “failure” because I was dealing with real-life problems instead of having the carefree life I assumed came with success. As I’ve grown older and seen the challenges me and my friends have overcome, I know now that behind EVERY successful woman is a trail of difficulties she’s encountered and overcome . . . life’s little tests that have made her stronger and brought her to the success that everyone admires.

Shortly after finishing the book, I came across another concept. A local radio DJ found a website at www.futureme.org. With this website, you pick a date in the future to have an email delivered to you . . . it can be one week, one year, twenty years . . . it’s your decision . . . and then you write an email to yourself and have it delivered on that date. (Of course, if you’re picking a date far out in the future, you need to make sure you are going to have the same email address . . . and, of course, hopefully, you’ll still be on planet Earth at your chosen time. ) In any event, I think it has the potential to offer a similar benefit. . . . .

So, who would you rather write to? Your former self or your future self? Try it!