A letter from May 13th, 2021

Dear you, Hey man, how are you? How's 2025? Are we back on the Moon yet? I gotta know what happens, but that's not why I'm taking to you know. I know taking advice from an 18 year old sounds kind of ridiculous, but I love speaking my two cents and besides, you're 23, you've probably taken your fair share of advice; this won't be too much. I have high expectations for you, of course. I hope you've gotten all your flight ratings, collected your fair share of stories, dated this person and that person, sure. However, above all of that, I just hope you stick to these three things, and if you do, you'll be doing just fine. 1. Never, ever, ever forget who you are and what you've done. You've come a long way from a kid who couldn't even look people in the eye. That's way too far to be let anyone or anything change you. Commit all of your effort to making sure that how far you've come only grows larger and larger. 2. Value the people in your life to their proper amount. This means two things: appreciate the people who are good to you, and don't sweat people who aren't. 3. Never forget your kindness. Beyond your intelligence, beyond your creativity, beyond any of that, your kindness is what defines you. No matter how maddening the situation is or how hard you wanna give up on being nice, don't. It's worth it in the end. 4. Pursue your dream with any means. Look, I know being an astronaut may sound a bit absurd at the moment, but if you can find a way into manned spaceflight, take the opportunity with both hands. This is what you've been wanting to do your whole life, and I'll be damned if you give up on it for the sake of a simple or private or easy life. Just let me know how it all turns out. Sincerely, you 5/13/2021