What would your 16 year old self think of you?

[fivechickens]

She’d be happy to realize that I didn’t have to worry about if a man would ever love me.

Also, probably be weirded out that we had triplets. Because, ewe kids.

[sunshineluv]

I would be shocked that my sister is my best friend. I would also think I was so rich.

[circa1978]

I'd mostly be confused, I think. A lot of things happened that 16YO me did NOT call.

[babsbunny]

Not shocked at not having kids. Seemed like something everyone did but didn't feel a maternal need.
Shocked I stopped playing instruments after college (and feel like I've forgotten how to read music).
A little surprised I don't have many friends and don't hang like I used to. (But not surprised I hang with my DH instead.)
Glad we stuck to our guns on having a good enough career to not depend on a man.
So fucking happy to not be in a cold climate area.

I also never plan or look that far ahead. And I feel like mostly the same person as 16 yr old me, just a bit wiser about the world and not boy obsessed.

[DotAndBuzz]

I think she'd think I was pretty lame that I didn't go to med school, but also be happily torn that I got the other piece of life she also really wanted, which was to stay home with kids.

16 year old me was already struggling with the "be academically high achieving but also be a SAHM" pressure/conflict. :\

I think she'd get along great with my kids.

I hope she'd see the life I have now, and when that new boy shows up at her school senior year, she'd run far far FAR in the other direction, instead of what I actually did.

She would also look at my siblings and think....yeah, that tracks.

[eb777888]

Aug 31, 2024 15:25:49 GMT -5 meganew said:

This is actually a game I play sometimes as a way to put things into perspective.

I do this too. 

I never wanted to marry or have kids when I was younger. Not until I met my H, then everything changed. Had my 16 y/o self known what my H's personality is like, she'd definitely understand why I changed my mind. Growing up I didn't know any adults that had happy marriages. I couldn't imagine a truly happy, fun marriage like me and my H have. I think overall she would feel really good seeing how incredibly loved and appreciated I am. If anything, I'd like to tell my 16 year old self that it's all going to be okay. Wonderful, even!

I do wonder what my 16 y/o self would think of me as a mom. I know she'd think I'm a good mom, but it's a funny juxtaposition of my teenage self's hopes/wishes/dreams compared to the mom I became. It's...... different! lol

[dancingnancy]

Aug 31, 2024 20:31:09 GMT -5 sunshineluv said:

I would be shocked that my sister is my best friend. I would also think I was so rich.

Yes! If 16yo me knew I’d be making this salary she’d think we’d live in a mansion. Joke is on her lol.

[sugarbear1]

Honestly, I think she'd give me a massive high five.

I'm divorced but happily so, and having much better sex -- and more of it -- than I would have dreamed of at 16. I'm in much better shape, happy with the trajectory of my career, and remain reasonably social outside of work and kids. I think she would really like me.

[minzy]

I think she’d be quite pleased. Great husband, wonderful kids, fantastic supportive community, getting to spend time doing important stuff that matters, always trying to be a helper. Can’t complain! She would probably be surprised to be a lawyer instead of a doctor, but I still feel that way sometimes. (I have also been having louder, rogue thoughts of medical school the last few months, but it would be such a ridiculous stretch at this age/life station.) I bet she would be jazzed that I’m planning to see a number of her favorite bands in a month. 😊

[SwimDeep]

She would be disappointed in my health and weight.

She would be shocked that I have a career and am CFBC. (At 16, being a SAHM was the only option.)

She would be confused by the current LC situation with my family.

She would be sad that I don't really write anymore.

She would judge me pretty harshly, I think, for being a liberal democrat and taking birth control.

She was a very lost, hurt little girl living in an extreme amount of pain and doing the best she could to cope.

My 22 year old self, on the other hand, would be pretty happy for me. Probably still disappointed that I'm not writing anymore, but at 22 I was struggling hard with mental health. (I was struggling at 16 too, but 22 is when i started to understand what was going on in my head.) She'd be so surprised that not only did I live past 30 - I lived past 40 too 😌

ETA - one thing that would blow both of them away is that I moved from being a very far right fundamentalist hard core believer to atheist and no longer want anything to do with religion.

[emilyinchile]

She'd probably be surprised and disappointed that my career isn't as high powered/fancy sounding as I always imagined - but even though current me hasn't fully shaken those self-imoposed expectations, I know I have a great set up.

She'd also be surprised I haven't traveled more, even though I've traveled a lot, but she'd understand Chile is just really far from everywhere else!

She'd be surprised I'm divorced but not disappointed in the context, and she'd be thrilled with my current nuclear and extended family relationships.

She would be horrified that I wear tiny spandex booty shorts outside of my house to workout and that I regularly wear leggings as pants on the weekend.

And she'd be happy but not surprised that we still have a lot of the same friends!

[staceymcgill]

She would be super surprised by who I married - I’ve known him forever and never had an interest until my 20s. She’d be shocked I work with elementary school kids - never something I wanted to do. She’d be surprised how much I love the beach and how much time we spend there - hated the beach until I had kids.

She’d be happy I moved to the place I’d always pictured - it’s where my dad grew up and I had family. Although I liked where I grew up I always kind of felt like I missed out not growing up here, but now my kids do.

She’d be really sad about my relationship with my mom, but hopefully proud of how I stood up for myself and cut out her husband entirely. She’d be devastated to know my dad and best friend are gone.

She’d be thrilled with my kids! Always a dream to be a mom.

[macmars45]

She'd be astonished we're no longer religious, that we got married (at 23!) and had a biological kid. She was convinced we'd never marry and have to adopt to be a mom.

She'd be trilled we work in education because working with kids was the plan from 14 on.

She'd be so proud of the boundaries we have with extended family because she never liked the go along to get along family dynamic.

She'd be so surprised we're good friends with our twin sister because in high school twin sister was too cool for us.

[court26]

I love reading these. 16 year old me didn’t have any idea what she wanted to do with her life except to be a mom. She always joked she didn’t want to get married so she probably wouldn’t be surprised about being divorced. She would be surprised about the type of husband she picked as she was very into boys in high school who came with lots of drama.

I think 16 year old me would be happy with the relationships maintained with my parents and sister and shocked that I didn’t maintain them with my extended family that I grew up next door to.

Whenever I do some thing that embarrasses my DD- it is probably the same stuff 16 year old me would cringe at. We are a lot alike.

[7costanza]

She would be surprised that I have a very happy marriage to a good guy, as there almost no examples of this with friends and family. She would be surprised I have two boys and love being a mom. She would be shocked I don’t really have money worries and have an actual career. She would be thrilled I don’t need to rely on a man for money.

She would be disappointed I didn’t move to a different state and haven’t traveled more.

She would be surprised at how big my boobs are, but sad they are no longer perky, lol.

[chickadee77]

She might be surprised at the path I've traveled, but not at where I am, if that makes sense.

[sonrisa]

She’d be disappointed I never figured out how to have a neurotypical brain (without realizing that was the issue). At that age, I thought i could ‘be better’ if I just tried hard enough.

[gretchenindisguise]

She'd be relieved to know she has ADHD and isn't just lazy.

She'd love my kids and husband.

She'd be shocked she lived in San Diego.

She'd be sad she doesn't own a home and still struggles with money management.

She'd be surprised at how little she talks to her brother, but happy with our relationship with her parents.

She'd be proud of what she has done with her education and career but wish we could figure out next steps already. Lol.

[sonrisa]

(As a side note - it’s great so many of you are thriving beyond your youth ambitions. I feel like kids often have unrealistically high expectations of what is possible - always comparing up. Most kids I knew at that age secretly expected they’d get lucky and get into their reach college, etc. lake woebegone effect and all that.)

[mysteriouswife]

She would be confused on how I married the BF. I was adamant I wasn’t marrying a HS BF. Also that I didn’t go to traditional college.

She would be overjoyed knowing I got out of poverty and my kids have never known hunger.

She would think I was crazy for being a stay at home parent for so many years.

[icedcoffee]

Oh she’d also be relieved to know that Accutane saved her from having a crater face and that one day she’d get comments that she has nice skin.

[Gato]

My 16 year-old self was extremely sheltered, naive and sweet. She definitely wanted to get away from her small town, but didn’t know much else. She couldn’t have conceived of how much she’d experience and of how she’d change as a result.

I mean, she’d be surprised that I didn’t become an architect, lost my religion,, had kids, and returned to Maine. But the more fundamental aspects of who I was as a kid—committed to social justice, dedicated to community service, and living a slow, simple life—she’d be happy those beliefs survived and even blossomed as I went through the years. She just couldn’t have conceived of all the places I’d live, things I’d try, and the cool people who would become my lifelong friends. But I think she’d be proud of me.

[heygrey]

She'd be horrified that I am liberal, pro-choice, and left the church. Good thing 37 year old me DGAF!

[JayhawkGirl]

She’d be shocked at the healing I’ve done from how i grew up, and the voice I’ve found for myself and my family. She’d be glad I learned about boundaries. She’d be thrilled I learned it was ok to have fun and be shocked at how blonde my hair is.

[jackie011]

I don’t think my life would surprise her, once she got over where we live. I currently live in a city that I vividly remember saying I absolutely hated when I was in HS.
Also, when I was that age I had no reason to think I’d ever leave my hometown. I haven’t lived there in over 20 years.

[jeaniebueller]

I had a bad childhood, I never really knew what would happen to me as an adult. I think I would be surprised that I have such a normie life.

[starburst604]

I think she would “get me”. I think she’d be super impressed that I’ve run marathons and am a fitness instructor, because that was really outside of my goals or interests back then. I know that I wanted a “bigger life” and I think that I got it. She’d probably laugh at my safe and sturdy Volvo but that’s ok. I always wanted a daughter and I have one and she’s named after my grandmother who was still alive when I was 16 so she’d love that.

She’d probably be a bit sad that the “love of my life”/marriage ended in divorce because she was a romantic, but can’t win em all.

She would adore my pets because nothing about my love of animals has changed since then except my ability to own and care for them.

[joy]

I think she’d see herself but a whooooole lot better. I hope she’d have a bit of awe, a small, knowing smile, and would breathe a sigh of relief that things do - indeed - mostly turn out okay (so far).

[pinkdutchtulips]

My 16yo self would be disappointed I didn’t finish law school, passed the bar, and was an attorney. She’d be thrilled w J and love the fact that I’ve got a dog. She’d also be pleasantly surprised that my 3k mile move the week before I turned 16 didn’t kill me and I made a bunch of friends in CA while hanging onto the PA friends. Going to college near an amazing beach in So Cal would have a nice unexpected bonus. I think she’d be happy w how i turned out.

Now the wtf part … she’d never understand why I dated much less married my xh and had a child w him. She’d questioned how I manage to stay sane while raising a child who has his brain chemistry. No worries 16yo Tracey, 50yo Tracey wonders too, daily.

[Doggy Mommy]

Probably surprised by my job (school principal), not surprised that we don't have kids, happily surprised that I managed to get to a healthier weight and a size 6/8 (but wondering why it took so long), and she'd be happy that I have my own career, make my own money, am independent, have a nice home, go to CA and Disney a couple times a year, etc. She would LOVE the dog. I'm sure she'd think that dh and I are lame and boring. I always wanted to be independent though, make my own money, make my own decisions, and not have my parents telling me what to do, so 16 yo me would appreciate that I have all that.