Dear 14-year-old Raymond,
This is from future you. I don’t know if you will believe me, but whether this letter is really from the 21-year-old you or from some random crazy person, it won’t affect the soundness of the advice I’m about to give you.
Right now, you’re just about to enter high school. You’re a chubby pimply introverted kid who just graduated from Ragnarok Online and is now moving on to DOTA. While you still think girls are ‘gross’, hormones are now starting to make you think they are more bearable than before. You’ll never admit it though and you still quickly change the topic whenever someone asks you who your crush is.
First, I advise you to exercise. The abs you make today will save you from the flabs that threaten you tomorrow. You’re around 5’6” and 170 pounds now and the scale won’t get any nicer in the near-future.
Better yet, start with taekwondo now. You’ll be a black belt by the time you graduate instead of the high red belt that will always make you think “so close and what if”. You’ll learn to love this sport and your team. You will experience a lot of firsts here: the first time you get kicked in the head, the first time you fall on the floor from pure exhaustion, the first time a grade-schooler beats you in sparring, the first time you get struck so hard you want to cry, and the first time you win a medal. It will be the first time you will have a sure sense of your self-worth, of your passion, and of your purpose.
And your purpose in life will be something you will grapple with for the rest of your high school life. You’ll grapple with your faith, and your role in society. Be glad that you grapple and that you overthink these things because one day, you’ll get into a school that built itself on these types of discussions. You’ll be proud you argued with that classmate in Philosophy who had the arrogance to say poor people are poor because they are lazy. You’ll be happy that you memorized the preamble of our Constitution in senior year especially when you’re in law school. Never conform because no one ever stood out by staying with the herd.
Start paying attention in Filipino class. You’re surrounded by English speakers, but outside this gated subdivision, you will learn that those people do not represent society. For sure, no one uses “nakakapagpabagabag” in real life but being fluent in two languages will really come in handy when you run for politics one day. That if you really want to help others, you must first learn to communicate with them properly.
While you’re at it, learn how to play a musical instrument. Most of the guys do it impress the girls, but this will come in handy whenever someone asks you “what’s your talent?” Unfortunately, kicking things is not a skill that you can easily display at parties or at organizational application processes.
Don’t freak out that you don’t know exactly what topic to talk about with girls. Though your knowledge of Pride and Prejudice and Nicholas Sparks novels will come in handy, any topic will be fine with them. Just be confident and listen to them. Most likely, they’ll do the talking for you and while you’ll often swear that “women will kill me one day”, you’ll actually find them easier to talk to than guys.
Cherish sleep. You won’t be getting anywhere close to the amount of sleep that you get now when you get to college. Spend the time you’re awake on books. You’re already a bookworm but take it one step further: be a book addict. Devour knowledge like it’s that plate of spaghetti that you love way too much. You won’t become the smartest person in the room, but you’ll be smart enough.
Smart enough will get you places. Smart enough will open doors. People will always tell you that you’re smart but you need to fulfill your potential. While that sounds eerily close to a compliment, it’s not. The world is full of underachievers, and I know that you don’t want to be just another guy dealt a great hand in life but didn’t make the most out of it.
Maybe that’s all I really want to tell you.
Make the most out of your high school life.
Sincerely,
Someone who wants the best for you.
*This is inspired by one of my favorite songs, “Letter To Me” by Brad Paisley and from someone who was too lazy to write about this topic on his blog in the first place.
The Road Less Travelled 