Dear Belle,

Hey there 26 year old Belle, I am you. Well, the younger you, the 16 year old you to be in fact.

You may have already forget some facts about your teenager self so I’ll just refresh you with some details.

First and foremost, I just created this Steemit account and this is my first post. I haven't still got the hang of this place but I am trying to. Hopefully I get to meet new people and make friends and whatnot. I bet your writing skills are better than mine. Of course it'll improve, you're 26 now! Haha.

Second, I have braces. It doesn’t hurt but the dentist told me that I have high tolerance for pain and I believe the saying “No pain, no gain”. I don’t know if you still believe in that quote when you’re reading this but I think that you still do.

I am currently trying to learn the French language. Emphasis on the word ‘trying’ because I am one inconsistent learner despite the free time. I hope you eradicated the habit of inconsistency already by the time you read this. Right now, I am still struggling with the grammar and some other stuff but so far so good. I am starting to wrap myself around the basics already which is good news.

I am planning to learn Mandarin as my next language because according to others, it is useful and good for the resume. But honestly, I don’t think I am that ready for Mandarin just yet because French has similar grammatical structure with English and Mandarin is a whole new world. I hope that you have learned some new languages already, 26 year old Belle.

Right now, I picture you as a chemical engineer but how I picture you constantly changes. What I mean is that I might see you as a medical student tomorrow or as a lawyer next week. But people constantly assure me not to worry too much and just go with the flow. I still have two years to decide. Two years is a lot of time. But whatever path you might have taken, hopefully you’re happy with your decision (and making lots of money. Haha.)

With the ten years that have passed, I wish you made the most out of your time, became productive and less procrastination. It would be greater if you had your breakthrough with those years but I don’t really expect you to have one. The breakthrough that I have in mind are writing a book, making a successful blog, made a short film, be a motivational speaker or have your own little business. Those are some unrealistic goals, aren’t they? Too ambitious? Well, that’s what I, the 16 year old version of yourself, aspires to be.

One of my life goals is to make my parents proud. Finish school, pass the board exam, find a decent job, pay all of the debts and invest some properties. Easier said than done, I know. I am not expecting you to have all of those achieved by now. This is just merely a reminder. Though, I hope you’re working on it already.

Honestly, I expect a lot from you. But always remember, that what matters is genuine happiness. Do more of what you love and less of what brings you down. It’s normal for us to be sad. Being sad actually brings out good things. Writers usually write when they’re sad or sometimes they get a wave of inspiration when they feel emotional. So, it’s okay to be sad. Be sad if you want to. Nobody is telling you to smile and be happy all the time. It’s normal to break down and cry. Just remember to stand up and move on.

If you’re sad that you have achieved nothing from what I mentioned, don’t worry, you’re just 26. You’re young. There’s still a lot of time. It’s never too late. Nothing is too late. As what the cliché says, “Better late than never.”

Yours truly,

Belle.

P.S. This is what your 16 year old self looks like.