what’s the small mercy you’d give your past self?
you know things now that you didn't know then. and some part of you still holds your past self to account for not knowing them sooner.
every day there's one live question, the same for everyone. answer it anonymously, see what other people said. it's all gone in seven days.
answer today's question →pick a version of yourself from a specific time. write down how old you were and what was happening. then write about what that version of you was doing wrong, or getting tangled in, or struggling with. now write what you'd say to them, not as advice, but as mercy. what would you let them off the hook for. what would you tell them they didn't need to carry. keep it small and specific. not a grand pardon, just one gentle thing. write it like a note you'd slip under a door.
- write about one mistake your past self made that you now understand differently.
- describe what your past self was afraid of, and whether it turned out the way they feared.
- write the kindest true sentence you could say to the version of you who was struggling.
this is for anyone who is harder on their younger self than they would be on anyone else. for the ones still carrying old shame that has probably served its time.