Dear Mary

What if you could send a letter to yourself and then back date it so you would have received it when you were 20 years old?I know we cannot live in the past but what if.....

Can you imagine? If you were anything like I was at age 20, you would have read the letter, smiled politely and then, more than likely, continued on just as if you hadn't read the letter in the first place.

Still, just suppose...

Pam, at Alert & Oriented X 4, wrote a letter like that at her post, (no, not to me when I was 20 but to herself).

I wonder what I would say to myself. hhmmmm

Dear Mary,

THINK! Just take 5 minutes to think before you act.

For someone so young you have been through a lot. You've changed from a stocky, quiet and insecure teenager to a thin, attractive and seemingly self confident young woman. If I didn't know you so well, I would think you had everything under control. To everyone else you appear confident, happy and able to handle any obstacle that comes your way. You like almost everyone and almost everyone seems to like you. The only person that I can think of that really doesn't like you...is you. SO, at the risk of sounding like ...... well, sounding like you will sound like in 20 plus years, I want you to take a deep breath and open up to someone. Tell SOMEONE what's going on inside of you. Otherwise you probably never will be able to.

And Mary, you're a good person. Remember that you have options.
THINK! Just take 5 minutes to think before you act.

I'm only going to nag you about one more thing and then I am going to tell you some really neat things. KEEP VISITING YOUR GRANDPARENTS!! I know you are getting to an age where you want to spend time with your friends and have fun but, remember all the wonderful summers that you spent with them? Well, they are getting older and won't be here forever. Cherish the time you have with them. Would it hurt you to visit them once every 1-2 months?

OK, I'll try to stop being a pest now. Anyway, guess what? Remember how everyone (including yourself) was almost POSITIVE that you would never want or have children? Well, you are going to have 2! They are going to CHANGE YOUR LIFE!! Don't laugh, but the phrase "Stay at Home Mom" isn't as bad as you think.

Oh, and guess what again. You aren't CRAZY!....well, maybe just a little but not in a bad way. You have something called ADHD. The good news is that there are medications for it. The bad news is that you will be "still very symptomatic" by the time you are diagnosed so the meds just sort of take the edge off. It's ok though. You won't mind most of your quirks and it really seems to help you find the humor in everyday life. Oh, but do yourself a favor. Try to remember that everyone doesn't always appreciate or even understand that "humor". You may want to work on not rambleing off every single thought that comes into your head. If all else fails, hum The Brady Bunch theme song to yourself before you speak.

Oh yeah. here are just a few quick things you may want to think about..

1. Please PLEASE take off that headband! It's ok to wear them in your hair, but not around your head like you are a cross between a Solid Gold Dancer and Pocahontas.

2.Henry Winkler really isn't as cool as you think he is. Think about it. Who skies in a leather jacket? Maybe you can write a letter to the producers of Happy Days and tell them not to let him "Jump The Shark"!! (but save your full size poster of him...maybe one day you can sell it on e-bay, (no, e-bay is not a fishing hole...well, some people might say it is!)

3. The world will not end if you miss an episode of Knots Landing! In 20 years you won't remember whether Gary and Valene ever got back together anyway. BUT if you do want to know, you will be able to BUY entire seasons of it on DVD. (Don't worry.....you'll know what DVD's are, and believe me, they're a lot better than Beta.).

4. Donate that set of 1976 Funk and Wagnalls Encyclopedias. You will NEVER, EVER use them. When you have kids, they won't either. They won't need to.....they can get all the info they need just by Googleing! (don't ask...you'd never believe me).

5. Don't let your oldest son drive before he is 18 years old. BELIEVE ME!! You'll save THOUSANDS of DOLLARS AND A LOT of STRESS!!

6. Be happy with how you look.

7. Buy Circuit City stock but BE SURE TO SELL it in 2007!!

8. You know that old Bible that you have on your bookshelf? Well, pick it up and read it once in a while.

9. Take a few college courses. One day almost all job interviews will be done on a computer. Even though you are a good "people person", you don't look that good on paper.

10. You may not think it is vital, but it REALLY wouldn't hurt you to put a little moisturizer on your face once in a while! I KNOW that you know you are never going to age, but just for kicks, try it anyway!

There is a ton of advise I could give you, but I know you well and you're going to do what you want anyway....SO....if you get just one thing from this letter, then let it be.....

THINK!! JUST TAKE FIVE MINUTES TO THINK BEFORE YOU ACT!!!!

That's all,

Oh yeah, one more thing, believe it or not, one day you will be able to sigh your letters "Love, Mary", instead of just "See ya!". (I knew you wouldn't believe me!).

Love,
Mary