
Twenty four
Sep 3, 2018 · 7 min read
things my twenty four year old self wants to tell my younger self.
Another year closer to biting the dust. Kicking the bucket. Reaching the finish line. Whatever sounds less scary and gloomy.
So on the occasion of turning 24, an age where I’m suddenly on the radar of family aunties for finding suitable ladkas, here are 24 things I want to tell my younger self…
- It’s okay to break down and cry once in a while. You don’t have to be so put together all the time. Crying in public is not as embarrassing as you made it out to be. No one’s losing sleep thinking about the time you broke down in public and embarrassed yourself. Life will go on. People will move on.
- Don’t be ashamed of the things you love, or hate for that matter. You are your own person and are entitled to your own opinions. You’re doing yourself a big disservice if you think you need to hide your passions because you fear that others wouldn’t understand.
- You’ll have endless fights with your dad, but he’s the only one who’ll love you unconditionally. No one else. He’s sacrificed a lot for you and still continues to do so. Don’t take his love for granted. Be there for him too.
- You’ll have some of the darkest days you’ve ever known. You’ll feel like there’s no point in getting off the bed and facing the world ever again. You’ll curl yourself under your covers and cry for nothing and everything together. But this will pass. You’ll feel better, the sun will rise again and you’ll finally get off the bed and face the music. Cliche words, sound advice.
- Ice cream for dinner is totally acceptable.
- There’s infinite pros to wearing black on black. It’s figure flattering, it takes less than 30 seconds to put together and be out the door AND it’s totally your colour.
- Pancakes for dinner is totally acceptable too
- Ed Sheeran is an angel sent to us who proves that magic still exists.
- You can’t be a self sufficient billionaire by the age of 24. Unless you’re talented enough to build another Facebook. It’s okay to not being able to afford those exotic European vacations on your own savings right now. You’ll go see one of those places one day and on your own savings. It’ll happen. Believe it.
- Know your bloody drinking limit, woman! Your drunken self is very unpredictable, loves making conversations with every stranger you meet and just more prone to accidents and attracting difficult situations. So fucking take it easy! Also, those head splitting hangovers? Not so manageable anymore.
- Splurging is fine. If there’s no one else dependent on your earnings, it’s okay to splurge and spend all your bank balance on that beautiful pair of mules, even if you have at least 27 more days until the end of the month. Wth are you earning for if you can’t treat yourself every now and then. Of course, this is very subjective and some people won’t agree with this (hi, dad!) But you’re young and allowed to be selfish. The responsible you can wait for some more time.
- You don’t need to have your life figured out at the age of 24 either. People around you seem to be constantly moving ahead and doing something with their lives, I know. But everyone has different goals and a different speed at which they do things. Judging your life and comparing it to someone else’s achievements is not fair to yourself.
- Don’t put things off for long. Get that degree, start that workout, strike that thing off your bucket list. Procrastination is a bitch and the longer you avoid putting in the hard work, the longer it will take to achieve your goals. I know curling under your covers and Netflixing the whole day sounds like a better idea, but don’t keep falling into that trap again and again.
- Spend more time with your mom. Don’t blame her for things being the way they are. It’s not a conventional family, but it’s still your family. She loves you unconditionally and will always want the best for you so don’t keep pushing her away, because she isn’t going to be around for long. Oh god, just hug her tight and tell her how much you love her, you stupid stupid girl.
Because trust the 24 year old you, you’ll get up one day and those childish tantrums of yours won’t make sense anymore. A daughter needs her mother and it’ll be too fucking late by the time you realise this, because she’ll be gone. So stop being a fucking asshole and go tell her how much you love her and that you understand why she couldn’t be with you. Don’t take your time with her for granted because soon, you won’t have any. - Moving away from some darkness, your best friends are the best fucking part of your life. You’ve been through a lot together and they’ll always be there for you. You’ve landed some amazing best friends, so be grateful to have such an understanding support system.
- Bridge that fucking gap. Mend that fucking bridge. With your dad, with your friends, with that annoying family member even. Don’t be scared of taking the first step because misunderstandings and small arguments are a way of life. If you love them, there will be a lot of other emotions involved too. It’s only natural. So keep your bloody ego aside and clarify shit. Work through a problem and move past it. You have a long long history with these people, don’t let it die because of stupid shit.
- Be social. Don’t be scared to go out there and make new friends and experience new shit. I know you might feel comfortable and content with your current best friends and know that they’ll always be your best friends. But all of you have different lives to live and they can’t be available for you 24/7. So don’t be an ass with a bloody resting bitch face forever. Be more approachable, give people a chance, get to know them. You want some real advice from your future self? You’ll meet some great people and make some really close friends even at 22, 23 and 24. Even after school and college. Even at work! These might not seem like they’re your kinda people at first. But they are, just give them time to show it to you. People aren’t that bad after all. Go figure 🙆
- STOP CUTTING PEOPLE FROM YOUR LIFE!
- With that being said, there’s also people you’ll naturally lose touch with. They’ll matter a lot during a particular phase of your life, but both of you will move on to different things and drift away. It doesn’t mean you loved them any less or that they didn’t matter. It won’t even be intentional. But it is a natural cycle. A friend once told me “Maybe some people are only meant to be in your life for a particular phase, or a particular time. Maybe they’re there to help you through that phase, and for you to help them back. And when their purpose in your life is met, they’ll move on” Drifting away from old friends is not always supposed to be sad. Be happy that you once knew them and wish the best for them.
- You’re one of those glass half empty people and it’s okay. Without you, there wouldn’t be those glass half full people. Accept it, embrace it, live with it.
- Spend some time honing your creativity. Develop a hobby. Painting, writing, singing, take these up seriously. They’re a huge stress reliever, and you’ll discover that you really do enjoy spending time painting and writing. Something about putting pen and paint brush to paper will feel almost therapeutic 😇
- Music is the bloody best thing, ever. Music is going to be there for you even when no one else is and it will always be a big part of your life, Komal. Feel lucky af because music means so much to you. I feel sad for the people who don’t realise how magical music really is. People who haven’t understood how powerful music can be.
So keep discovering new music and keep listening. Listening to music won’t always be a big moment filled with epiphanies, it might be something really simple like listening to your playlist when you’re travelling to office or when you’re taking a shower. But music will be always be a constant in your life and you’ll be fucking thankful for it.(Some backstory for the reader- My dad is actually the person I’m most thankful to, for passing on his love for music to his only daughter. Not everyone can boast of waking up to the sound of their dad singing old Hindi tunes every morning in that loud volume only dads and bears can reach. While other dads were busy teaching their kids nursery rhymes, my dad was busy teaching me songs like “Kisiki muskurahaton pe hu nisaar….” and “Aa chal ke tujhe…” It was so much bloody fun. That guy taught me how to sing aloud, without any care in the world and so you’ll always see me belting out songs at a bloody scary decibel. Also, do note that I said I sing aloud, not that I sing in tune :p) - Attend concerts whenever you can! Listening to music on your phone and laptop is fun, yes, but listening to your favourite band live will be the best thing ever! Standing in a concert venue next to your best friend, watching your favourite band or artist play right in front of you, screaming out the lyrics with hundreds of other strangers beside you singing the same song…. no other memory is going to come close to beating that. Nothing. At least not to your 24 year old self. Just think about it, in those moments, every last person in that stadium will have one thing in common and that is their love for this band or artist and music in general. It will be euphoric.
- To end this letter, don’t cry about getting older. There are millions of people out there who are fighting for their lives, fighting to get one more day to live, fighting to turn 22 and 23 and 24. Be fucking grateful that you lived to see another year of your life. Don’t be a bloody cry baby.
There. Twenty four things I want to tell my younger self. Now if someone can really invent that time machine, I think I might have some use for it 🤷
