Dear Younger Me,

It feels so strange to talk to you now, knowing what I know. Your life seems so simple, yet so full of endless possibilities. You have no idea what's ahead of you. You think you've got it all figured out—life feels predictable: work, friends, church, family. It all feels safe. But little do you know...

You believe the world around you will always stay the same—the same faces, the same places, the mountains, and those breathtaking sunsets you never stopped to fully appreciate. Yet, you were restless. You'd complain, saying, "I want to grow up. I want to be married. I want a family. Everyone else has one, why can't I?" But did you ever consider the price of those things?

Looking back, you had it easy. Despite the pain you put yourself through, the times you searched for love in the wrong places, or the moments you hurt yourself just to feel alive—you still turned out okay. Your childhood was almost too easy, although you didn't see it. The teenage years stripped away your innocence, but they also opened your eyes to the real world. Even through all of that, the divine protection over your heart, your spirit, your life—was unmistakable.

You couldn't have known the life you would've have that that moment that shocked you to your core just to see how good things once were. Moving to the shoreline felt like an ending, but you turned out to be just the beginning of everything. That's where you found yourself. That's where you discovered your purpose. Set you on a path that changed you forever.

Now, from where I stand, it's easy to see it all the things clearly. But in the moment, it wasn't. I wish I had you know given our hometown a proper goodbye it deserved. I wish I would have had given you the proper goodbye you deserved. We had to grow up fast, but in a way, it made us stronger.

You never imagined you'd end up here. Did you ever think you'd live in the mountains? Go back to school? Did you ever believe you'd become a man you once dreamed about all those years ago? But here you are. The dream that once flickered in your heart has finally come true. But it came at a cost. And that cost was losing you. So here's to you, my younger self. To the world and the life we once lived, to the lessons we learned, and to the songs that now tell this story through. I know it was easy, I know I lost you,

But as always from me to you.