Today I am 24 years old! If you’d asked me when I was 14 what I’d be doing when I was 24, I’d have told you I’d be a pop star dating the lead singer of some emo rock band. In my 16 year old self’s eyes, I’m a failure, but I’m okay with that. Just ask Kim Kardashian, last year she penned a letter titled ‘DO NOT OPEN UNTIL 2025’ where she asked her future self questions and attached some rather sweet pics of her family to look back on. It might seem a little narcissistic but in 10 years time who knows where you’ll be and who you’ll be with, having a blast from the past might just make your day! So here’s why (and how) to make a time capsule for your future self.
#1 It’s 2016
Yeah, it’s a whole new year filled with possibilities, and what better way to welcome that year in than to have a little think about where you’ll be in 10 years and write a letter to your future self? Ask questions you know can’t be answered until 2026, attach pictures, talk about what matters to you now, while it may seem silly, these are the things you might need to remember in 10 years!
#2 It’s a light hearted way to find out if you’re happy
The only way you’re going to get to where you want to be in 2026 is by working your butt off now, I’m sorry to say. Making a time capsule will remind you that you can’t leave your fate in the hands of your future self, nor can you keep putting everything off until ‘tomorrow’. Grab today by the horns!
#3 It’s sweet and sentimental
A proper time capsule should be a box or container of some sort filled with all the things that make you who you are, your favourite snack, photographs, the song you keep listening to over and over again, rediscovering those things in ten years time and reading a letter that outlines your worries, fears and goals, is a great way to stay connected to who you are.
So how do you make a modern day time capsule?
You could go the traditional way and lump everything you like into a box. But then you’d have to find somewhere to hide said box, somewhere that people won’t get into, and that you won’t be tempted to break into before the right time!
Traditionally, you bury it in your back garden, but I don’t know a twenty something who’s willing to bury a box in the garden, or has a garden of their own to bury stuff in. So, maybe you should make yourself a modern day time capsule via email or USB, use futureme.org to ping an email to your email address whenever you want, and address your future self about everything that’s bothering you. If you make a USB time capsule, you can put songs, videos, links, articles, photos and letters one on USB, seal it in an envelope and leave it somewhere safe (we suggest your parents house!).
Have fun talking to your future selves!