The “You” of tomorrow; the “You” of the past; and the “You” of right now.

The you of tomorrow needs things from you.

The you of tomorrow needs you to take care of yourself today, because what you do today is going to fuel the you of tomorrow.

The things you read today are going to inform the perspectives and expand the toolbox of the you of tomorrow.

The things you eat today are going to physically fuel the you of tomorrow.

The kind of exercise you get today is going to determine whether the you of tomorrow is strong and flexible or not.

The care you take of yourself AFTER you exercise is going to determine whether the you of tomorrow is sore and stiff or limber and loose.

What you focus on today is going to determine whether the you of tomorrow is going to start out from a position of strength, calm, and confidence, or if the you of tomorrow is going to start out from a position of anxiety, trepidation, and doubt.

The choices you make— what you say “yes” to, what you say “no” to— today are going to determine what the you of tomorrow is going to have to work with…or work against.

The you of tomorrow is counting on you to make some good choices.

The you of the past needs things from you, too.

The you of the past needs you to remember that you were younger then than you are now. Less experienced. Less knowledgable. Less tired. Less wounded.

The you of the past needs you to remember that you are no longer the you of the past. That no matter how hard you try, you can’t go back and be the you of the past ever again.

You can’t go back and un-make decisions or mistakes you once made.

You can’t go back and delete things you said and other people heard.

The you of the past needs you to know that they understand you only did the best you could with the tools you had at the moment.

The you of the past needs you to forgive yourself for those old mistakes.

The you of the past needs you to know that every minute you spend trying to un-make old mistakes— mistakes that can never be un-made— is a minute you rob from the you of tomorrow.

The you of the past needs you to remember where you were coming from at times in the past when you felt certain ways and behaved in certain ways.

The you of the past needs assurance from you that they weren’t dumb or bad for not having been perfect— they were just young.

What the you of the past might need more than anything else, however, is assurance that you’ll pay attention to the lessons of the past. That you won’t let sadness or fear convince you to shove the past in a closet or under a bed. That, no matter how painful it might be, you’ll take the past for what it was— a series of events that, while they were very meaningful at the time, happened once upon a time.

The you of the past needs you to know the difference between the you of the past and the you of now.

What both the you of the past and the you of tomorrow need from you is your patience.

The you of the past and the you of tomorrow need your respect.

The you of the past and the you of tomorrow need your attention.

The you of the past and the you of tomorrow need your best effort.

What does the you of right now need?

That, only you can answer, right now, in this moment.

Maybe the you of now needs rest.

Maybe the you of now needs to take a few long, deep breaths— and to not be shamed or guilted for taking those long, deep breaths.

The you of now needs to know that there are people who care about them. Maybe not all the people you WANT to care about you, and maybe not in the WAY you wish they cared— but there ARE people out there to whom you matter. Even if you don’t know it.

The you of now needs to know that this moment, right here, right now, reading these words— this moment can be a fresh start.

The you of now needs to know that you can never have a better past, but you’ve arrived right here, right now, with the tools you have, with the talent you have, with the challenges you have, with the baggage you have.

THIS IS IT. THIS IS YOUR LIFE. THIS IS YOUR GREATEST CHALLENGE.

The you of now needs to know that as long as you can read and internalize these words, you have gas left in the tank.

The you of now needs to know there’s hope.

The you of now needs to know it’s not over yet.

The you of now needs to know, with absolute certainty: the best is yet to come.

 

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