The following is a very popular joke:
"Dear Past Self,
MORON!
Yours Sincerely,
Your Future Self"
How many times we look back and think, "Man, was I an idiot or what?!" for the stuff we did or thought.
Same applies to me as well truly speaking. But also when I look back I realize that probably I was so much less cynical and critical about life in general. For example I look at the few posts in my blog and all of it is generally groaning about one thing or the other! I guess that realizing that life is not ideal and perfect is one of the unwanted lessons we learn by the time we grow up.
When I was cleaning out my cupboard, from the depths of old, no longer usable material came a tattered, frayed and yellowing paper. It was apparently a letter that I wrote to my favourite cricketer when I was sixteen. When I read the letter, I was struck by the innocence and purity of the letter which only an optimistic, starry eyed and an utmost sincere fan would be able to write. And yeah I have no qualms of saying this in my own blog - I was a bloody good writer at the age of sixteen! Anyway, in my last post, I talked about the negative impact that a sportsperson has on a fan when he/she breaches the trust of the fan.
I want to demonstrate through this letter which I will present shortly the power of positive influence of a role-model. Any thing is bracket and bold red are comments from my present day self .
Dear Mr. -,
My name is Aditi Susan and I am a 16 year old Indian girl. I am a passionate cricket lover and have been following the sport since I was 6 years....ie ever since you started playing. So I can say that I have literally grown up watching you.
The truth is Mr. -, you have and will always be an inspirational figure to me....an optimistic thing in my life....a hero.
Whenever I watch you play , my heart swells with pride...whenever you hit a six I feel an adrenalin rush....whenever you take a wicket, along with you even I'm jumping. (Cringe, cringe, cringe!)
All the times you have won matches for your country, you have made my day...all the times when you have been caught up in troubled winds, I have almost been in tears. And yeah, this has happened for the last 11 years.
Its pretty ironical that a sport star, film personality, political figure or any individual can affect the lives of other people without even knowing. (Spot on! 10/10 for this one!) I look up to you, I admire you and deeply respect you.....You have inspired me with your sheer professionalism, dedication, passion with every ball you bowl, every delivery you face or even every ball you field.
You have taught me the importance of being the best you can ever be, never buckling under pressure and under the weight of competition. You have showed me that people stand out when they perform and reinstated my belief that good guys always finish first.
One quality that I really idolize about you is your consistency. Its one thing to perform a miraculous deed and be the 'hero for the moment' and hog all the limelight for a short period of time (i wonder who I was referring to when I wrote this) and another thing to keep on delivering the goods for about 11 years and not let arrogance go through your head.
They say you can comprehend an individual's personality by seeing the way he performs his duty. Your lively, jolly and pure-hearted self has never failed to bring a smile on my face. The dignity with which you have handled difficult circumstances and your ability to prove all your critics wrong shows your depth of character.
So for your consistency, confidence, humbleness and for being a gem of a player and a person, I salute you....Like all heroes....you symbolize hope...and optimism as well. You have shown me that if I do my best, I can be someone great...if I give my 100% not only will I be able to fly..I will soar above the skies. (dramatic lines which make me smile now :-))
Very few people makes a person get such a feeling...(think I have learnt to be much more concise and to the point now rather than just rambling on!).a feeling that I am a person who is worth it....a person who has a lot to offer...a person who can achieve beyond her dreams and a person who people look up to.
This Mr. -, is the impact you have on a teenage girl. And for that...I thank you...sincerely....from my heart.
You are always assured of my support, my best wishes and prayers in whatever you do in your life.
Always
Yours Sincerely
Aditi Susan
I never did send this letter to him. I guess I wish I did. I might have got a reply back in the form of an autograph or a signed photo or maybe this letter would have just joined a heap of similar ones. The cricketer in question is long retired and my favourites these days include AB De Villiers and Alastair Cook but somehow they can never have the same impact or bring out the same intensity of emotion in me. Maybe I have just gone older and 'wiser'.
We go through a lot of experiences in life which mould us into the people we are today. We learn from them. But maybe sometimes it is good to turn back and rediscover some of the good things of our past selves. In my case, in a world full of wrongs, where no one can meet eye to eye on anything, where everyone is hell bent on finding fault I realize that it is a good idea to stop and believe in the good that exists in people and situations. Most importantly don't take life too seriously by being disillusioned by it for whatever reason. Learn to enjoy it...after all it's a gift.
"Dear Past Self,
MORON!
Yours Sincerely,
Your Future Self"
How many times we look back and think, "Man, was I an idiot or what?!" for the stuff we did or thought.
Same applies to me as well truly speaking. But also when I look back I realize that probably I was so much less cynical and critical about life in general. For example I look at the few posts in my blog and all of it is generally groaning about one thing or the other! I guess that realizing that life is not ideal and perfect is one of the unwanted lessons we learn by the time we grow up.
When I was cleaning out my cupboard, from the depths of old, no longer usable material came a tattered, frayed and yellowing paper. It was apparently a letter that I wrote to my favourite cricketer when I was sixteen. When I read the letter, I was struck by the innocence and purity of the letter which only an optimistic, starry eyed and an utmost sincere fan would be able to write. And yeah I have no qualms of saying this in my own blog - I was a bloody good writer at the age of sixteen! Anyway, in my last post, I talked about the negative impact that a sportsperson has on a fan when he/she breaches the trust of the fan.
I want to demonstrate through this letter which I will present shortly the power of positive influence of a role-model. Any thing is bracket and bold red are comments from my present day self .
Dear Mr. -,
My name is Aditi Susan and I am a 16 year old Indian girl. I am a passionate cricket lover and have been following the sport since I was 6 years....ie ever since you started playing. So I can say that I have literally grown up watching you.
The truth is Mr. -, you have and will always be an inspirational figure to me....an optimistic thing in my life....a hero.
Whenever I watch you play , my heart swells with pride...whenever you hit a six I feel an adrenalin rush....whenever you take a wicket, along with you even I'm jumping. (Cringe, cringe, cringe!)
All the times you have won matches for your country, you have made my day...all the times when you have been caught up in troubled winds, I have almost been in tears. And yeah, this has happened for the last 11 years.
Its pretty ironical that a sport star, film personality, political figure or any individual can affect the lives of other people without even knowing. (Spot on! 10/10 for this one!) I look up to you, I admire you and deeply respect you.....You have inspired me with your sheer professionalism, dedication, passion with every ball you bowl, every delivery you face or even every ball you field.
You have taught me the importance of being the best you can ever be, never buckling under pressure and under the weight of competition. You have showed me that people stand out when they perform and reinstated my belief that good guys always finish first.
One quality that I really idolize about you is your consistency. Its one thing to perform a miraculous deed and be the 'hero for the moment' and hog all the limelight for a short period of time (i wonder who I was referring to when I wrote this) and another thing to keep on delivering the goods for about 11 years and not let arrogance go through your head.
They say you can comprehend an individual's personality by seeing the way he performs his duty. Your lively, jolly and pure-hearted self has never failed to bring a smile on my face. The dignity with which you have handled difficult circumstances and your ability to prove all your critics wrong shows your depth of character.
So for your consistency, confidence, humbleness and for being a gem of a player and a person, I salute you....Like all heroes....you symbolize hope...and optimism as well. You have shown me that if I do my best, I can be someone great...if I give my 100% not only will I be able to fly..I will soar above the skies. (dramatic lines which make me smile now :-))
Very few people makes a person get such a feeling...(think I have learnt to be much more concise and to the point now rather than just rambling on!).a feeling that I am a person who is worth it....a person who has a lot to offer...a person who can achieve beyond her dreams and a person who people look up to.
This Mr. -, is the impact you have on a teenage girl. And for that...I thank you...sincerely....from my heart.
You are always assured of my support, my best wishes and prayers in whatever you do in your life.
Always
Yours Sincerely
Aditi Susan
I never did send this letter to him. I guess I wish I did. I might have got a reply back in the form of an autograph or a signed photo or maybe this letter would have just joined a heap of similar ones. The cricketer in question is long retired and my favourites these days include AB De Villiers and Alastair Cook but somehow they can never have the same impact or bring out the same intensity of emotion in me. Maybe I have just gone older and 'wiser'.
We go through a lot of experiences in life which mould us into the people we are today. We learn from them. But maybe sometimes it is good to turn back and rediscover some of the good things of our past selves. In my case, in a world full of wrongs, where no one can meet eye to eye on anything, where everyone is hell bent on finding fault I realize that it is a good idea to stop and believe in the good that exists in people and situations. Most importantly don't take life too seriously by being disillusioned by it for whatever reason. Learn to enjoy it...after all it's a gift.
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