Recently, I was writing a letter to an 18 year old serving at a camp. This person asked for letters while they were there. It made me think, what would I have told myself at 18 if I could go back in time? I gave it some thought, and here’s what I came up with.
- Think about the big questions. Don’t just take for granted why you’re here and what you’ve been told. Think about it for yourself and try to understand reality, making your views your own.
- When you’ve thought through something, have confidence in your thoughts and move forward. At the same time, be kind and willing to listen to those who have different thoughts.
- Almost everything that is good in life takes work. Start as early as you can working on the skills that will serve you, bless others, and glorify God. These are things like friendships, spiritual growth, physical training, languages, and musical instruments. “Art is long, and time is fleeting.”
- Take advantage of the opportunities you have to see new things and experience new and different things. For example, travel will not get easier when you are older and have a family.
- Make God the first priority with your time, money, and energy. You’ll never regret it, and this is the thing that you were created for first and foremost.
- Closely related, always think through what you want to do with your time and money and be deliberate. You either tell your time and money what to do, or it will tell you what to do.
- Give attention to your emotional life. One’s emotions often (rarely?) reflect reality, so begin reframing the stories that you tell yourself that shape your emotions. Give attention to your emotional interactions with the important people in your life and learn to navigate them well.
Looking at my life, 27 years later, these are the things I would have wanted myself to consider at 18. God willing, I still have a lot of life in front of me. So, I’ll work to implement these things now.
What advice would you like to have given to 18 year old you?
Eliza, in the musical My Fair Lady sings: