As seniors rip open the envelope from inside their mailbox, recognizing the handwriting on the address, they eagerly await the letter inside, knowing that it’ll tell them a little bit about their past self. In fact, it’s their past self that has written to them.
Every year, English 9 teacher, Susan Schueler, has her freshman classes write a letter to themselves that she will later mail out to them when they are seniors. This year’s seniors recently received theirs in the mail. “You’re going to be you for the rest of your life. I think the most important thing I can teach [students] is to learn about themselves,” Schueler said.
She encourages her freshman to write about their social life: who they have a crush on, who has a crush on them, their friends, their family, and any embarrassing moments they’ve had. “I tell them to make [the letter] as gossipy as possible. The more personal, the more interesting it will be to read three years down the road,” Schueler said. Laughing, senior Morgan McGlothan said, “I wrote about boys. So many boys! I was so immature. I was reading it like, ‘Who is this person?!’”
Every year, students also have the opportunity to decorate the envelope and/or put in a present as a surprise for their senior self. McGlothan gave herself $5, a pack of gum, and trading cards from her freshman year in AVPA film. Senior Ellis Kennedy slipped cinnamon sticks and red glitter into her envelope. Sometimes students can even put notes to each other in their friends’ letters. After writing the letter, students address the envelope to their current address and put a stamp on it, provided by Schueler. Given the digital generation, Schueler has had to help some students address the envelope. After the envelopes are ready to go, Schueler rubber bands the letters from all her classes in one year together and stores them in her back closet where they will stay confidential and unopened. Not until three years later will the letters be opened and read by the authors themselves. McGlothan advises freshman writing their letters to, “Write what you feel. Don’t censor yourself.” And lastly, “Brace yourselves.”
