I received a letter from myself on Monday, and what amazing timing God has. It was just what I needed.I was feeling down, because I hadn't done as well on my exams as I had hoped. But on the way home, my parents showed me an envelope addressed to me in uncannily familiar handwriting. I opened it, completely unaware of what was going on. Here's the letter, with my misspellings and poor grammar!
April 28, 2003
Dear Tiffany,
I've known you my whole life. Now it's your turn to guess who I am. It's pretty easy, just think about what you did in the year 2003 in writing class. Okay, now that you know who I am, I'll start telling you about me. (I couldn't think of an intro)
I have a brother and a sister. Chris turned 15 on April 20th and Tash is 11. I'm glad I'm 12 already, because I hate it when Tasha and I are the same age. My mom is working full-time right now, because my dad decided not to take an internet casino project and get laid off instead. Now he started his own company called iCrescendo and it's going okay.
When I'm bored, I usually start making things. Sometimes, it's beaded jewelry, other times sewing, crafts, one time I made an awesome miniture display of a room. If you're wondering, I did change pencils.
I just moved to Woodinville last year. I'm a sixth grader now, at East Ridge. I'm doing pretty good in all subjects.
The popular stores and stuff right now, event though I'm not into them, are abercrombie, limited too, Claire's, Hot Topic (yuck!) and Target. There's the 12 Cinema's movie theater too and ppl like to go there. I wonder if Lord of the Rings is still popular? Oh well. Personally, I'd rather get clothes at TJ Maxx where things are cheaper. I wear glasses. Do you have contacts? When did you start? since I have way more questions, I'll go to the next paragraph.
What college are you going to? Scholarships? What do you plan to do as your career? I want to be some sort of doctor. Maybe the one who discovers the cure of prevention of cold, cancer, corona virus pneamonea. Are you planning on getting married? (hehe) I told everyone that I wasnt get married. Have got to find out if it's true so far. I think I've ran out of questions. One last one. What friends from sixth grade of below have you been able to keep in tought with? Who's your best friend? (I know, that was 2).
Sincerely,
tiffany Y. Lim
P.S. Has your signature changed? Who's your worst enemy?
What a reality check this letter was! I thank God for reminding me of my hopes and dreams and craziness as a 12-year-old. Reading this letter helped me reflect on how He's been writing the story of my life, and that He will shape it into something that truly glorifies Him...even if I don't do as well on my exams as I would like. :)
But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. - Psalm 33:11
What a cool experience to see into your 12 year old mind!! Great post Tiffany!
ReplyDeleteI've been wondering for some time now: what is the best way to preserve images from the past? Photography is the way to go for most things, but it cannot be used to preserve a copy of the mental state.
ReplyDeleteI found that poetry is good for expressing emotion to oneself. When written correctly, it somehow saves certain connections in the mind that are rediscovered when reading. Still, I doubt that a poem composed now will work, say, 10 years from now. For example, if I feel happy and write a poem, then read it, I might feel happy again, but the feeling will be not the same.
Letters like these are fun by themselves, especially when you have no idea at the time of writing what you are going to do with it. I remember, at the end of 4th or 5th grade, I was returned an envelope with a letter that I wrote when I entered fourth grade. Inside was just one sentence:
"I am from Russia."
This was when I was unfamiliar with the culture and barely knew any English - of course, I had no recollection whatsoever of writing this. (Thinking about it later, I think I vaguely remember another Russian student dictating that line for me because I was stuck.) I think seeing that piece of paper was fun in itself.
What do you feel when reading this letter? Does it bring back specific memories of that time? Does it bring back a general picture of what that time was like for you?
And the most important question: are you going to respond?
I was encouraged in reading this letter. It helped me see how God really is writing a coherent story for my life. My life isn't a random collection of experiences, but part of a planned story with a purpose being written by my heavenly Father. I can't wait to see how God will fit all the pieces together for His glory!
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