9/26/10

"Hello, you.

I have so much to say, and yet only a lifetime to say it. My hand will start aching very shortly, so we must begin!

Who am I? I am me. I wear tie-dye pants and I have a garden. I hate my dad, & I don't know why. Perhaps it's because he made me this. Lately, I have discovered that everything I really want in life – everything I ever needed – was right in front of me when I was little, and for some reason I let it go. I used to want to be a math teacher, and I used to swim, and I used to be me. Then somebody told me I had ADD, that somehow I was special, and it was know I was special that made me want to be the same. I was not pressured. I was compelled. It was the worst thing that ever happened to me.

Of course, I am me now, and I am happy with me, so whatever events transpired to make this happen must have not been too bad. There have been some bumps along the road. Last month I flew across the country to tell the women I loved that I loved her. She said that she no longer had feelings for me. I had hoped to remain friends; alas, the world doesn't work that way. I'm done fitting molds though. I have moved on to someone new, someone who's favorite movie is Mulan and someone who thinks a zombie apocalypse would be great.

I hope that you find the courage to be yourself, to move on, to take life slow. Plant something. It's soothing, really, and it doesn't take a lot of work. Plus, if you plant a vegetable, you get to eat it later. You get to eat something that you grew.

Oh, and please, tell someone that you love them. It really does mean something.

Sincerely,
Me

P.S. I'm thinking about shaving my head."

Digital Submission: 9/22/10

9/21/10

(The older post wasn't functioning properly, so I had to repost this letter. Sorry!)

New Address

Hello Strangers!

I changed dorms this semester, so I have a new mailing address. Don't worry, all mail going to the old address will still be forwarded to me.

Remember to read the terms before sending me anything.

Also, I would like to thank everyone who has submitted so far. This has been an incredible experience for me. Please keep writing, drawing, and taking photographs!

9/16/10

"To my dear, dear Stranger,

I read so many letters on here that say “Though I'll probably never know you.” Well this is my attempt to rectify that. I hope that in return, you would write a Stranger telling them who you are. Well, shall we begin?

I am love. I have a great capacity for love . I will automatically love you because you're human. Our flaws and our aspirations create in us such beauty, that every single one of us is a work of the most divine art, and worthy of love. I love you, for you are special as well.

I am rage. I also have a great capacity for anger. I inherited my father's temper, and sometimes have a short fuse. I can sometimes get angry over the small things, annoyances only to anyone else. I recognize this flaw in myself, and attempt to work with it every day.

I am anxiety. I battle everyday against fear and anxiousness. It was a gift from my mother, teaching me as a child to fear the world, fear failure and success. It paralyzed me for the longest time, until I learned to channel it into something wonderful. Ambition.

I am hope. I was given an unshakeable optimism, and sunny outlook. It's a counter to my anxiety and it helps me to move forward with life. Never a dull day in my life, you see? Hope allows me to love, fear, and rage against that wonderful, fickle, terrifying, beautiful thing known as tomorrow.

I am conflict. Having such deep emotions opens you up to being so very conflicted at time. Love wars with Rage while Hope struggles with Fear. At least Creativity give it all an outlet, a way to channel it's energies into something constructive. It's a good thing, a little conflict.

I am human. All there emotions instill in me the undeniable fact that yes, I am indeed a human being, and that is the most wonderful thing in the world. It's the mundane facts as well as that contribute to our humanity. I'm 24 years old, living in a small town called Winchester, in the state of Virginia. Look it up! I'm finishing my associates degree at Lord Fairfax Community College, then going on to a four year school. For what degree? I don't know yet. All I know is that I love life, and I shall endeavor to forever do so.

Who are you?

All my love,

The Lost Stranger"

9/5/10

"Hello, dear friend!
    It's difficult for me to think of a suitable start to this letter to you – someone I have never and will never (both assumptions) meet. However, I suppose I should not worry since I will never know your judgement of me.
    I would ask who you are, but something tells me I will never get a reply, therefore I will tell you about me: I am a female and 18 years old. When I was 10 my father died, and in the years following years [sic] I have struggled with mental illness (panic, anxiety, and depression); however, I have also become stronger through these experiences. In the last two years I have travelled overseas alone for months at a time, and in 2 days I leave for my first year of college in a location that is an 11 hour car ride from home. I suppose if I were to give any insight based on these experiences, it would be never to give up your dreams and that the human condition is amazingly resilient, making nothing impossible. If you ever struggle, know that this earth can be cruel, but that it is only a passing thing – you are here for a reason and are truly irreplaceable. When you feel alone, know only that I am thinking of you and care deeply about you. In time you will get the happiness you deserve.
    As I write you this letter I am sitting at my computer desk, my facebook profile open while I watch “Life After People” on the History Channel. I enjoy watching such shows. The Discovery Channel and National Geographic are my favorites. My favorite TV prgram ever created is “Band of Brothers”, and if you have not yet seen all things international, my favorite film is “Das Leben der Andven” (The Lives of Others) also definitely worth a watch. I suppose those are all things you don't really care to know, but, friend, I have decided to share them with you. Maybe you like them as well and, in fact, feel a minor connection to me. Maybe if we really met we would actually be friends. Life works in mysterious ways, and maybe some day we will unknowingly find one another, and should you get to know me you will recognize me as the stranger from whom you got that letter all that time ago. Maybe... maybe not. It's fun to speculate, though, isn't it? When you put this letter down, I wonder if you will ever think of me again? What will you do with this piece of paper and the picture sent with it? Only you will know the answer to these questions. I just hope that you've found this letter interesting and were not disappointed by its contents. If you were, I apologize, and I promise that my next letter to a stranger will be better. For now I suppose I should let you be, though it pains me to bring our short encounter to an end. I hope it has been as memorable for you as it was for me.

<3 your friend."

Write a letter to a stranger.