Now, let’s hope I’m able to give you all 30 things about meeee!

1. I love smiling–Never loved my dentition growing up though but I’m definitely embracing everything thing about me and smiling is one of the…And I always get compliments about my smile so its a win win right?

2. I am an Urhobo girl but I really want to marry a Yoruba guy. Yall should pray for me.

3. I don’t like people—This is a shocking discovery to me because I’ve always thought I was accommodating and a but I’d rather keep my distance with people fr.

4. I hate noise, especially when I’m not the one making noise.

5. I have a speech defect called cluttering. Whenever I speak, my words get all muffled and you’d hardly hear me. Safe to say my mouth talks faster than my brain processes the information so my words come out anyhow.

6. I’m my DADDY’S GIRL

7. I HATE ANIMALS.

8. I love ice cream.

9. I’m a Christian. I take my relationship with God seriously, though sometimes I know God wants to give me a knock on my head but it’s all love😅

10. I’m a middle child.

11. I love my own company, I enjoy it a little too much.

12. I’m very observant.

13. My facial expressions give it away everytime. You’d know when I’m irritated and don’t like you by my facial expression.

14. I’m a lover girl to the CORE.

15. My favorite food is Banga soup and Eba—I eat alot. Like a whole lot, but somehow, I'm still a stick weighing 49kg and sometimes 50 kg on a good day😅

16. I’d always choose spending your money over spending mine.

17. I’m afraid of crowds. I have social anxiety especially when surrounded by people.

18. I love watching Kdrama, Cdramas and those Nigeria YOUTUBE movies. You’d always catch me watching these.

19. I do not tolerate disrespect of any kind.

20. I’m not confrontational. If you offend me or do anything to do me, best believe I’ll cry it out but I won’t meet you about it.

21. I have an insane variety of hobbies. I sing, I dance, I write, I create content, i do a bjt of photography and video editing, amongst many others. I just love them and I genuinely have fun doing them.

22. I have a very low attention span.

23. I’m very shy.

24. I’m a very funny person. Words on the street says I’m a clown, Joker and a comedian. Three in one. I promise you, you’d never be bored when you’re with me.

25. I love everything about me. You can’t make me feel bad about my body or me generally. I love my mind so much that sometimes I’m genuinely amazed by how much I can do.

26. I feel emotions too deeply and I overthink alot.

27. I truly hate the fact that I can't see without my glasses.

28. I pout alot.

29. I reciprocate energy.

30. I fall in love easily. Don't judge me sha, me sef don tire for me😅

She had her face buried in her hands, and I could hear soft sniffling sounds,

as if she were trying so hard to conceal her tears.

I tried so hard to stand up and comfort her, but I felt stuck.

I wondered what was going on. Safe to say, I was completely confused.

I lost it.

Stuck? Why was I? Why couldn’t I move?

I screamed and shouted for help.

The helper had somehow become the person who needed help.

She slowly lifted her head and looked at me with so much pity.

And in that moment, I realized she wasn’t a stranger.

She was a reflection of who I was.

And it seemed I was still struggling to break free from the shackles that held me bound.

I had always believed the bigger person meant being the stronger one.

But even the strongest person has their own struggles and fears.

Strength is often measured by how much you can carry, but how much can I actually carry before slowly losing myself in the process?

I stopped screaming for help.

I had to be there for me because, as many will say, “Nobody is coming to save you.”

And inasmuch as I don’t completely agree with that phrase, at that point I knew I needed to save myself.

So I took a deep breath...

Instead of trying so hard to break free from the shackles, which of course was painful as I struggled with it,

I gently walked towards her and knelt beside her,

and softly whispered, “Don’t be afraid, I’m here now.”

I held her close to me and wrapped my arms around her.

It seemed like the weight gradually left her shoulders as she breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

And then it dawned on me.

Carrying the weight wasn’t the problem.

The problem was she had been carrying it all alone, and it made her question who she really was.

She had to be strong for herself, so she carried a false identity.

She believed her worth was measured by how strong she appeared, how much she endured, and how little she needed from others while sacrificing herself.

But I knew there was more to her than that.

She wasn’t asking me to fix everything at once.

She understood that life is a continuous journey of learning, unlearning, and relearning.

So she was willing to go through the process of life and grow, but she was afraid.

Afraid because, somewhere along the way, she felt abandoned.

She was willing to heal, but she didn’t have it figured out.

So I stood up.

I reached out my hand and pulled her up.

I looked at her and said,

“We don’t need to figure it out today, we just have to keep moving, one step at a time.”

And for the first time, I saw her smile.

Not because everything was suddenly okay.

But because, for the first time in a long while, she felt seen.

And somehow...

so did I.

And, oh my! She had a pretty smile.

And there I made a promise to her, to us,

that, to the best of my ability, I would never let her smile fade.

If you’re reading this,

Is this merely a reflection?

Or is it a story of growth?

Perhaps we’ll never truly know the answer unless we make the time to pause,

to reflect, and to journey honestly through life’s difficulties and struggles.

Though you might be feeling trapped in your own corner today,

I hope you know it’s okay to pause.

It’s okay if you don’t have it all figured out.

The weight you’re carrying was never meant to be held all by yourself.

If you’ve been screaming for help, try turning inward for a moment.

Offer yourself the same patience, love, and compassion you so freely give to everyone else.

You are allowed to stand up, dust yourself off, and take it one day at a time.

That shadow in the corner used to feel like my whole identity.

But sitting with her, comforting her, and choosing not to leave her behind changed everything.

It was me back then.

And if you’re sitting in that corner right now, know that this can be you too.

You can stand up.

You can breathe again.

And, one day, you can smile—not because life suddenly became perfect, but because you finally chose yourself.

Check out my previous article if you loved this one!

A new session, new notebooks, new classmates. We’re finally in SS2 and that means we’re no longer “baby seniors”...HAHAHA

You really thought this year was going to be different.

You had no idea it would start with a rumour.

How did we manage to say absolutely nothing while everyone else had something to say? Why must everyone have an opinion? Gosh!

Looking back now, I can’t help but laugh. Not because it didn’t hurt—it did.
I can still picture the turn of events perfectly.

But guess what? I know how the story ends.

You remember him, don’t you?

The boy who asked you out during the break. The one you said no to because you knew he already had someone he was talking to.

Wait...was that our first?

Nah, it wasn’t.

You were such a hot cake back then😂

You rejected them all.

I won’t judge you, though.

That school environment wasn’t exactly one where we wanted to get involved with boys.

Imagine walking five feet apart from your male best friend so they wouldn’t think y’all are in a relationship and call you to the disciplinary committee.

Yeah, well, we’ll pass.

Oh yeah, right...back to our story.

You thought saying no would keep you out of trouble.

Instead, somehow, you became the girl who “stole someone’s man”

Typical secondary school drama.

Now, how did the whole school even know he asked you out? We only told our close friends, and they weren’t blabbermouths.

Oh well.

A mystery we don’t have an answer to and I doubt we would cause girl it’s been what? five years?

I know where you are right now.

You’re crying.

You’ve already filled three pages of your diary, and your best friend is sitting beside you, trying to comfort you while you keep pushing her away. Somehow, being alone feels easier than explaining how unfair all of this feels.

I wish I could sit beside you for a minute.

I’d tell you that this won’t be the last time people misunderstand you. It won’t be the last time someone says something about you that isn’t true and it definitely won't be the last time no one speaks up for you.

But I’d also tell you that the truth has a funny way of finding its way back.

Years from now, he’ll apologize. He’ll admit he should’ve spoken up from the beginning instead of allowing you carry the blame.

Life will move on, you’ll both graduate, and one day you’ll forgive him.

Yeah, I know what you’re thinking, we were bullied and trash-talked about, it wasn’t fair. It did hurt but we’re in a much better place now.

And holding on to that pain would hurt even more.

It's crazy that I can write this now because, even at twenty, I'm still learning how to deal with my own emotions.

I used to think that you can’t control what people say about you and even though that’s true, it’s hard trying to understand why.

I still cry.

I still carry hurt longer than I should. I still replay conversations in my head, wondering if I could’ve handled things differently. I still avoid confrontation because it scares me more than I’d like to admit.

So no, I don’t have it all figured out, despite the fact that I'm writing this.

And sincerely, that’s okay.

I’ve realised that growth isn’t becoming someone who never gets hurt—girl be realistic, have you met people? They’d literally pour salt on your wounds so it’d hurt more.

Growth is not allowing the pain define you forever.

But I’m learning.

I’m learning that healing isn’t measured by never crying again. It’s measured by how long I stay there.

I’m learning that forgiveness doesn’t erase what happened; it simply means I no longer want my pain to have the final say.

I’m learning that growth isn’t waking up one day as a completely different person. It’s choosing, over and over again, to become a slightly softer, braver version of yourself.

And you should know that some days will be more difficult that others; that’s the process of growing so allow it.

We’ve still got a long way to go.

But we’ve come a long way too.

And I think that’s worth celebrating.

But if there’s one thing I know now that you don’t know yet, it’s this:

One day, this won’t just be another painful memory.

It’ll become a letter.

And maybe someone else will read it and realize they’re going to be okay too.

Just know, I'm so proud of you!

Love,

Me



If this reminded you of a younger version of yourself, I’d love to hear about her.

Thank you for reading my very first letter.

Until the next one,
Juliet 🤍

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​Just found out I created a Substack account two years ago and totally forgot about it. But hey—here’s to actually starting!

​"Dear Younger Me" is my space where I write to my younger self. It's about navigating the noise, celebrating the small wins, and embracing the messy, beautiful journey of self-discovery. I'm giving you the raw versions of who I was, and who I’m becoming.

​It’s a journey, and there's no doubt I’m still figuring things out too. My hope is that these letters find you right when you need them, too.

Welcome to my paper trail.

Love,

Me

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