Thirty Years of Special K
This is me, thirty years ago, on holiday in Rhyl.
and this is me now.
Ask my mother and she'll tell you I haven't changed a bit. I don't think my smile has changed much but, obviously, I'm a lot taller and a lot older!
I've been thinking about this post for a little while and reflecting on what I would say to my six year old self if I had the chance to plant some ideas in that mind. I wouldn't change my life now for the world but I would be interested to see where I would have ended up if I'd made a few decisions differently so here goes...
Dear Philippa
Actually, we'll start there. You love your name right now but you'll get over it by high school and when you get to my age the only people who will call you that are your parents when they are talking about you. It will be Pippa or Pip to everyone that knows you and that's how you'll refer to yourself.
Keep reading - books will take you on some of the biggest adventures you will ever have, without ever leaving your home. They are a window on worlds you will never know but will be offered to your imagination.
Keep writing - you'll struggle with this for a while but, when you are me, you'll be writing more than you have done at any other point in your life. You will love it. Don't let anyone else try to take that away with pettiness and harsh comments. It will leave you without a creative outlet for far too long.
Try not to take the easy option - I've done that a few too many times and, while I don't regret it, sometimes I look back and wonder if I would have achieved a few things that I let slide or didn't try hard enough at. When you're looking back over thirty years it can be the outcomes you don't know which weigh heaviest on your heart.
Be a better friend - you are good enough and you are loved. You'll spend an awful lot of time wondering about both of these things and that self doubt will lead you to losing some of the people you have loved most. Don't let that happen, cling on to them with both hands. People are working on a thing in a lab somewhere called the internet right now and that will change everyone's lives. It will also make it easy to keep up with these friends. Just wait until you get email when you're eighteen! There will also be Facebook and Twitter but you'll spend quite enough time on them when you're thirty-six without me talking about them when you're six.
Give your all - Not everyday, no-one can do that. When it matters though. Again, you'll regret those times when you didn't do your best and, while you can happily live with the regret, imagine knowing that you tried your hardest!
Children - You'll have the biggest adventure of your life in your thirties. Being a Mummy is amazing and will be the best thing you'll ever do. It has answered so many questions, and asked lots more. It's hard, but completely worth it. Try to love every second of it!
Geography - Yes, you will be really good at it but ignore that weaselly English teacher who tells you you won't pass your English Literature A Level and puts you off applying to read English at university. You will get an A. The pleasure of telling him you proved him wrong will be even sweeter if he knows that you are off to study 'his' subject.
And finally...
Tequila - no good will ever come of it. Avoid. That's absolutely all you need to know on that subject! Oh, and those green Dr Martens you throw away aged twenty-six? Big mistake, huge.
I've never been a massive fan of breakfast cereals, I tend to go through phases of eating them and not. Special K has always been a favourite when I am eating them though. To celebrate its thirtieth anniversary Special K has changed and now includes a mixture of three grains, making it into a portion of your wholegrain for the day. I actually think that this has improved the flavour of the cereal and have been really enjoying breakfasting on the box that we were sent.
