By Megan Cynaumon
Dear Avery,
When I started this blog, my intention was purely to share my life experiences with you so that you would learn from them and create your own. Little did I know, my words have spread further amongst friends and family who want to be apart of this experience! Do you see how LOVED you are?
My last post about High School really resonated with a lot of people because of how emotional, pivotal and important that time in your life is — you will soon find out what that time is all about. But in the meantime, these ultra special people have come together and offered their own pieces of advice for YOU, Avery. Here they are:
From: Laura (my friend and softball teammate from HS) –
Looking back on my time in high school, the one thing I wish I did differently was have more self respect. I was so concerned about fitting in that I compromised the person that I am. Now that I am an adult, in a loving committed relationship, I see now all the stupid mistakes I made because I didn’t value the person I was. If I could have told my 15 year old self to stop trying to impress people and just be the dorky, quirky, loving person that I am – I think my high school days would have been a lot different. People can’t respect you if you don’t respect yourself.
One other highly important thing…LEARN THE VALUE OF A DOLLAR. I used to EXPECT money from my parents and would squander it senselessly. Now that I work for my own money and know exactly how much things cost, it just makes me realize how I had no concept of money management when I was in high school. I could have saved my parents thousands of dollars. Knowing how to handle money responsibly is an important lesson to learn – and the sooner you learn it – the better off you will be.
From: Pepa (your Mama’s best friend, and your God mother!) –
What I would say to my 16 year old self:
-stop worrying about your body…it is beautiful, it is healthy, and it works hard every day to help you be you. don’t stress about what other girls wear, what other girls look like, or even what other girls say, you are beautiful, and you have much better things to do with your time and energy than to worry about changing how God built you.
– Don’t spend so much time chasing after boys who don’t appreciate you, and know that you’re worth more… I dated a long line of jerks between high school and my husband, and while I believe that they all helped me more fully appreciate Scott, I carry a lot of emotional and physical scars from giving my heart, time and energy to boys who didn’t deserve it.
– Try new things, be brave, be young, don’t be afraid to make mistakes. The good news is that there are a lot of people who love you and will support you, even when you aren’t your best self. On your worst day, you are still working toward being who you will be.
– If i could do one thing different, looking back, I would have made more friends and stopped being so afraid. On the surface, I was outgoing and had a ton of “friends”…but in reality, I let very few people in, and as a result, I feel like I missed out on knowing (really knowing) a lot of wonderful people. (Now, let’s also be clear, I have some FABULOUS people in my life now because they didn’t give up on me then!)
– Listen to your parents, they really do know best 
🙂
From Jessie (my dear friend from college, bible study member and book clubber) –
1. Definitely play a sport!
2. “Don’t ever compromise who you are or what you believe for other people”
3. Don’t take high school boy friends too seriously the likely hood of marriage is very slim (this was my mistake hahaha)
4. Befriend people of all different social groups (unfortunately clicks are inevitable)
From Ellie (a friend of your Mama’s and mine from high school) –
In high school wish I had had more focus and drive instead of just barely scraping by. Those four years were a tough time for me, after moving for a third time and having to pick up where I had left off. I spent too much time focusing my energy on trying to fit in and finding my place, when I should have risen above and concentrated my focus on doing well academically. With better grades, I would have been able to prepared myself better for college, as well as opening the doors to more higher education options. But, the past is the past. While I do regret not trying harder, I know that I have the rest of my life to be the best person I can be. People will come and go; the ones who are truly impressed are the ones that will stay in your life for a very long time. So, impressing people other than your teachers isn’t what high school should be about. Impress yourself, and you will go far.
From Cassie (my dear college friend, bible study member and book clubber) –
Learn an instrument! (or special skill)-it may be your job one day!
From Melissa ( a dear friend of your Mama’s and mine) –
Sistas before mistas! Always put your girlfriends first. It will be easy to always want tohang out with a cute boy but boys come and go….good girlfriends last forever!
From your Mom (she wrote a full letter that I will save for another post) –
I wish I had known that a broken heart was not the end of the world. With each day that goes by, it gets a little easier. Remember that Avery!
Take these pure gems with you along your own journey and ENJOY it!!!
With love,
Aunt Megs and friends
With Love, Aunt Megs 