I was unaware of the latest trending #Imetmyyoungerselfforcoffeetoday until I came across the below quote, which caught my attention and made me ponder.
I met my younger self for Coffee today.
I lit a cigarette, He left the table.
I spoke of money, He spoke of dreams.
I showed him my watch, He showed me his sketches.
I laughed at his innocence, He cried for my soul.
We sat in silence, two strangers in the same skin.
~ Stephen Okpelle
Ah! Cliche I thought. The old cultural story that you become rich only when you sell your soul. That either you can be honest or you can be rich. That dreams and money don’t go together. I have heard it for four decades now, and I can vouch that this is the narrative for naysayers, people who do not want to grow and aren’t willing to learn, unlearn & relearn.
I was there for a long time. I used to feel proud telling everyone, “I follow my passion, money doesn’t excite me. Blah! Blah! Blah!” But today, after multiple failures, I have changed my narrative, “My passion is my bread & butter. And I work hard to earn so as to fuel my dreams.” And yes, I am still authentic, honest and a passionate dreamer. And I love money, because I am very well aware and have experienced that without money dreams die. To me, nothing is more painful than watching your dreams die. That actually is the death of the soul.
Coming back to the original thought. Like, what if I met a twenty-year-old Shruti today? Would she look up to me? Or would she be appalled by my current thoughts? Would she be embarrassed? Or will she pat my back? #tbh I do not care.
Because, even if my younger self judged me, or left me, she will not know the journey I have had, to ‘BE’ who I am today. She wouldn’t be aware of the pain, hardships, failure, heartbreaks I had, that broke me, shaped me, and made me.If someone asks me to trade myself for the young, vibrant, naive, twenty year old dreamer that I was, I wouldn’t do that at any price. I embrace and respect my journey, my every success and pitfalls, they are all mine and summates to who I am today.
Today, I am completely in love with myself. Back then, I lived in self-pity.
Today, I have a fair idea of ‘Who I am’. And that’s a superpower. Back then, I was lost.
Today, I live by my values, distilled in the last forty years. Back then, I lived by the high moral standards the world set for me.
Today,I have a fair idea of the world and know my way around. Back then, I was too naive.
Today, I am way kinder to myself. Back then, I was too harsh on myself.
Today, I know how to address my emotions. Back then I let emotions sway me.
Please do not be mistaken, I love my old dreamer, naive self, and I am still a dreamer but I am in complete awe of myself today and I am sure tomorrow I will be in love with myself more.
I own the choices I made, to be ‘ME’, today.
Change is life. The process is called moulting, alchemy, or metamorphosis, a common natural phenomenon, and it is as natural to change over a period of time (however, society might detest it). After all, change is the only constant. Life is a journey, and we are all a summation of experiences that were unique, our own thumbprint.
Leave a Reply