This was a 10-year "time capsule" letter that I was supposed to open a year ago. Due to packing, moving, and general chaos, it finally turned up today.
The best things in my life are: My sweetie, Sam. My 6-month-old kitten, Oedipa. My job, which allows me to share my writing - even if it is just with Winnemucca! My parents, who love me even if they often drive me crazy. My near-certainty that so many adventures lie ahead and I'm ready for them all!
My personal goals for the future are: To always be a writer, in some capacity. To be a mommy someday. To make my mother very, very proud. To always be kind to people and animals. To fill my own corner of the world with peace, love, and optimism. To be referred to as "classy." To never stop dreaming, and to be happy.
My wishes for the future of the world are: That people start taking teenagers, especially their sadness and fears, more seriously. That the rainforests somehow endure. That women win their deserved roles in government and business. That marijuana and gay marriage become legal. That guns begin to disappear, especially from the lives of children. That heavy women are considered beautiful.
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New Year's Eve, 1999, is not the biggest celebration of my life. I'm at my little rented duplex in Winnemucca, waiting for Sam to finish his shift at Dominos. The living room is a mess. I made chocolatey Chex mix and inadvertently trashed the kitchen. I just watched Barbara Walters do a card trick on TV and screw up. I can't believe they're still showing commercials about Y2K. I'm so sick of it!
When Sam comes home, we'll go celebrate with Sheldon from work. I barely know him, and he's not having much of a party, but it's something to do.
I'm not disappointed. I'm fixated on the future and none of this millennium stuff feels very real. So much of this century has been waiting for my life to start. School, school, and then Nevada. I'm not done yet, so why pause now?
Maybe I'll take off in 2000. Sam might start school, I might land a dream job, and maybe he'll even ask me to marry him. Imagine!
So I hope you're not too disappointed in me, because I can't offer any huge insights and I didn't spend the New Year in Times Square or Vegas. But I'm here, the millennium is dawning, and I'm a young, optimistic girl with glitter on my cheeks. And I know that, even though I have not left my mark on humankind yet, I am experiencing history today - my own.
Best wishes to the 21st century.
Love,
Monica
