Dear future me,

I hope you read this when you need to be reminded that it’s okay to listen to your heart.

I want to briefly take you back to a moment when you ached for time to stop, when you yearned for eternity to surge with the genuine bliss that existed at that moment. I want to remind you of a time that, despite its seemingly average occurrence, never left your mind, even when it should have.

I don’t even remember how that day began. I know it was in August. I know it was cloudy, and rain drained from the drab, dense sky. I know it should have been a day that merely blended in with the rest of my summer memories.

I was with two of my friends, and the three of us decided to venture out into the unknown world, secretly betraying our parents by biking down to an ice cream place about a mile away, something that had occurred at least twenty times by that point.

But the three of us, my meager sneakers, and my bold ambition quickly became drenched when the rain began to pour and my friend’s mom called her, telling her to come home.

Maybe it was the thrill of the moment, the warm rain, or the urgency of needing to bike home as quickly as possible, that filled me with this strange fervor. It was simple, ordinary even, but for some reason, I am not able to forget it.

I remember the feeling of biking down this immense hill before reaching home; the rush and slight exhilaration of surging down the hill on my bike while the rain streamed down my body might’ve been the closest I’ve could’ve gotten to feeling eternal.

Because that’s how it felt. The innocent elation and fire that lit up inside of me as I biked toward the horizon felt, just for a moment, like the sidewalk would never end, the rain would pour forever, and my bliss would never melt. I felt, just for a moment, like I obtained this strange invincibility, almost as if my own ardor would become my personal shield.

What occurred beyond the hill, well, I’m not sure. I know I spilled my tea after I hit a crack in the sidewalk on the way down and laughed about it. I know I eventually reached my own home and stared out my window, reminiscing on my slightly dampened invincibility.

Either way, I want you to remember that feeling of reaching that imitative eternity, the uncomfortable yet perfect blend of adventure and joy, because you should be able to feel that more often, even if the warm August rain isn’t accompanying the day.

To say that I hope you feel that feeling every day may be slightly quixotic, but that feeling should still never leave you.

No matter where you go in life, no matter what path you decide to stroll down, it should make you feel that warm contentment. Those short-lived, eternal moments occasionally make life worth the commotion.

Even when it feels like the wind is doing everything to blow against you and hold you back, you should search for those moments, grasp onto them, feel them, and never let them go.

Sincerely,
Your heart