Small and happy: a letter to my younger self.



Dear 16 year old Sophia,

Well hello there me, firstly, what do you think you're doing with a bear on your back?! You are under the influence of oranges here (as evidenced by the collection you are amassing in your room) so you really can't blame your behaviour on inebriataion.. 

Anyway, as you are reading this I know several things for sure about you. 1, that you have a massive crush on Orlando Bloom, 2) that you are experimenting with highlights (bad choice babe) and 3) you are heading into your final term of school with GCSEs are on the horizon. 

I know you can't wait to be done because you are desperate to be rid of maths and science forever and you can't wait to 'never have to care about biology again' but oh boy do you have another thing coming, sister. Right now in 2015 you are not only sitting pretty with a first class honours degree in psychology under your belt but you actually teach maths (as well as lots of other things) EVERY SINGLE DAY. Yep, bet you didn't expect that. And what's more, you really enjoy it.

You've always loved kids and that's why you'll be glad we work with them every day now. You've already met, helped and laughed with (and been frustrated with!) probably a hundred kids and that looks only to grow in the coming years. The amount of kids, not the frustration hopefully!

But here's the best news, you finally don't hate your legs! That's right! After becoming cheerleading coach at uni (yep, you are basically Brooke Davis, expect you still don't really care about fashion) and discovering the magnificent creation that is Zumba (just you wait!) you have gotten the body you always wanted. I hope I've made you proud! 

You are also a bit of a culinary whiz, and by this I mean you can make a few meals with a reasonable level of success but hey, we've always been optimistic. We eat a lot of vegetarian meals (but still love Nando's with a passion) and stay away from carbs pretty much, turns out they weren't our friend after all.

You have been to so many incredible places, I still don't even believe it myself! New York (yes, really), Thailand, Hong Kong and Venice to name a few. Trust me you've got a lot to forward to.

Now what about those friends you love? The ones you see every day right now and laugh through life with and share ridiculous giggles about ridiculous things? They're still here and they're all thriving. Doing jobs we never expected, loving people we didn't even know back then and all navigating this tricky road that is our 20s all in our own different ways.

On the subject of love. You have found someone. A real someone. The one. Yeah, I know you're thinking that sounds crazy at our age now. You'll think it's even more crazy when I say we've been together since we were 17. 'That's not what I planned!' I hear you cry. 'I wanted to stay single and work on myself and maybe go on a few dates because I want to travel and not be tied down.'Well, it turns out that the right person doesn't tie you down whatsoever, they set you free. Yep, I'm still cheesy at this age!

All that amazing travel? Most of it you did with him. So do not worry about love at all because your life is going to be completed in ways you didn't even know it was lacking. All I can say is: on that fateful day in May 2008 when an important person sits you down on that park bench and opens their heart in a way you never thought happened off the screen or out of the book, open your heart right back, 100%.

I think that's plenty for now, I don't want to spoil it all for you! I know you have a lot of questions, like, what do you mean cheerleading?! And, when was the last time I ate a sandwich?! Etc... But that's the beauty of it all, the not knowing! We are lucky you and I that we have open hearts and live our lives with kindness everyday and I truly believe that's what brought everything we have now to us.

So, keep helping other, keep smiling as we always and keep pushing yourself to succeed because you do, you really do.

Love, grown up me!

ps - no, we've still not grown. Not one inch. Sorry.

X


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