TMYS - Hosoo's Letter

For today's TMYS letter, we have my dear friend Hosoo. She lives in IN and works in the field of Information Technology. I've known Hosoo for quite some time now and SO excited she's joining me for the YWCA 5K this coming June. She's not a blogger but don't we ALL foresee this in her future??? Hint*Hint* It'd be great and I'll be your most enthusiastic commenter, just like you! Awesome.

Dear Younger Hosoo,

I’m writing this letter to you because I only wish that there was a way that I could turn back time and help you avoid those mistakes or understand those things that you just didn’t know.

Summer of 1996: You were 15 and so curious about boys.

There’s really nothing wrong with being curious about boys and talking to them. Your mom did a pretty good job drilling lectures in your head about boys, sex and its consequences. You know what not to do but at times you were just so damn careless. An example: You lied to your mother about spending the night at your cousin’s and went to this house party with a bunch of teenagers that you met and befriended with at a summer camp. There were many boys, and alcohol among other things. For some stupid reason, you thought it would be cool to share a bottle of vodka with 2 boys in the kitchen. Damn girl! Didn’t you know that your mom, brothers and grandfather and pretty much everybody in your mom’s side didn’t have any tolerance for alcohol? What made you think that you were any better than them in your alcohol consumption skills? Fast forward 6 hours, you woke up on the floor in the living room sleeping next to this guy. Oh by the way, you threw up in your hair while you were asleep….yuck. Luckily, nobody took advantage of your helpless body. Thank GOD! Well, you learned your lesson all right, because you never drank like that ever again.

1997 – 1998: You were still a typical teenager, worried about boys and clothes

Girl, do you know how much time you have wasted thinking about boys, talking to your girlfriends about boys and talking to boys? Instead, you could’ve studied harder and focused on other important things in life. Remember when you were 13 and 14, you really liked swimming a lot and just hanging out with your other cute friends listening to “New Kids On the Block”? More like being in love with them? J. That was cute. Why couldn’t you continue swimming and spending your time in other meaningful activities? Another thing I wish you could’ve done is to pay more attention to your mother. Your mom is the backbone of your household and she’s like the glue that holds your family together. I wish you talked to your mother more and just be there for her because she went through a lot. You knew it but you just lived with it. She needed your support the most because you’re her only daughter and your 3 brothers just don’t understand. Couldn’t you notice that your mom had been really sad and unhappy for many years? All you did was to blame your father for everything. Although he was and is the reason for much of her unhappiness, least you could’ve done was to support your mother in any way you can.

Summer of 1999: Almost 1 year after you moved to the U.S with your family.

I know it was difficult for you to adjust to an American culture and learn English. You did a good job obtaining your GED and taking SAT because American universities wouldn’t accept your high school diploma from Mongolia. So you did what you gotta do in that field. However, you were still so clueless in other areas. Example: Remember that day you were bored at home and watching TV. They were running “Psychic Hotline” commercials all the time? Well, what were you thinking picking up the phone and dialing that 1-800 number that had disclosure written in tiny letters that you couldn’t see and also disappeared off the screen so fast? You talked to that ‘psychic’ woman for maybe 30 minutes talking about nothing important. A month later, you got a phone bill for over $400. That summer, you worked extra hours at McDonald’s to pay that bill off behind your parents’ back. Luckily, you were in charge of paying the phone bills which usually were just under $30 and nobody found out your stupid psychic mistake.

2000 -2004: College years!

Girl, I know you busted your butt going to school full time and working at least 30 hours a week trying to make ends meet. I’ll give you that. But you were just too busy to realize that what you were majoring in wasn’t really want you wanted. You changed your major twice! First it was business, then it was Telecom and then you changed it to Informatics. Since you thought you liked IT, you could’ve taken other technical courses or obtain certifications in different areas to strengthen your knowledge and skills. Because they don’t really teach you what you need to know in real world. They don’t, trust me! You also should have made time to get involved in other extracurricular activities because you were always so busy with school and work, you pretty much abandoned everything else. You should’ve enjoyed your ‘college years’ and made time for your friends.

2005 – 2006 – Home Sweet Home

So you went back to Mongolia a year after graduating college. You wanted to see what it’s like to live and work in Mongolia as it had been 7 years since you left home. Although you visited home several times during those 7 years, those visits were only few weeks at a time. Things were different in Mongolia than the U.S. You found yourself trying to adjust to yet another culture. You tried but at times your friends and coworkers called you ‘anti-social’ cause you weren’t really clicking with them. One of the most important things that you could’ve done being in Mongolia was to bond with your family, relatives and friends. You have missed out on lot of things while you were away. That was your chance to rebuild your relationship with those that you love and care. Unfortunately, you only had 1 year to do so because you fell in love with an American man in college and you guys decided to get married. You were there for your family and friends but you could’ve embraced every moment that you spent with them. Because you won’t get to see them as often as you would like now that you’re back in the States.

Summer of 2006 – 2007: Married and mature you

I don’t have much to say or complain to you because I know you did everything you can do improve circumstances in your life during this time. What a ride it’s been, huh? Getting married and getting to know your husband on a different level and most importantly finding yourself. You found out that you were much more patient and stronger that you thought you were. You never thought you had it in you to understand and forgive those who you hurt you and betrayed you. Now that you’re back in the States and happily married, you miss your family and friends so much. Your grandpa passed away and you just felt so lonely and sad not being able to be with your family during this difficult time. Sometimes you felt like you can never be happy because you can’t have everybody that you love in one place. It’s a sacrifice that you had to make to be with the man you love. Just keep on living and be grateful for everything you have in life. It’s a blessing!