A letter from May 23rd, 2020

dear future me, i hope you’re still here. if not, i hope that this letter finds you, whoever is reading this, in good health. my name is kaylee wood and i am, right now, 19 years old. i’m engaged to ashley tu, who i believe is the great love of my life. we don’t know when the wedding will be. we live together in los angeles, california. we have a cat named oliver and a hamster named kiwi. i work at chipotle, although because of the virus, my hours have been cut virtually in half. kaylee, i want you to be okay. i want you to go to school and get a degree and find a job that you can actually see yourself doing. i want you to be happy. i want you to have a beautiful home with your beautiful girl, with a yard and a dog and oliver. i want you to have so many plants that your home looks like a jungle on the inside. i want you to eat good food and be thankful for what you have. i want you to enjoy going outside and soak in the sun. i want you to have lots of tattoos, and a style that you feel confident about. i want you to have friends that encourage you to do great things and stupid things and things that you might regret later but is fun to do anyway. i want you to have fun and enjoy living. i want so much for you and i hope to god you’ve found joy. things are difficult for me right now because i dislike the city and i’m too far from home, and mom. i have no friends and i am tense and anxious. i miss my home, i miss sitting in the grass. i miss bonfires and trees and horses and community. i miss my family. i hope you’re okay. i hope you have a good therapist. i hope you’re feeling in control of your life. i hope you can take a breath and know that you are loved and are surrounded with people who choose you. please, be well. with all my love, kaylee from may 2020