My dear son,
As I sit down to write this letter to you, I am filled with a sense of love and responsibility. As your father, my greatest wish is for you to lead a happy and successful life. That's why I want to share with you some of the lessons I've learned during my own journey. I hope by offering you raw insight into my life, I can help you find direction and purpose in your own, and give you the tools to navigate the paths ahead.
Finding direction
As a youth, I lacked direction and purpose. I had grown up without a father and my mother was often preoccupied with her own struggles, leaving me to figure things out on my own. This is a large set of unseen obstacles for any naive and young man As a result, I was just going through the motions in life early on and with plenty of fuckups along the way.
Unfortunately, it took me many years to realize my way of living was creating an unspectacular and unfulfilling life. I was not living life with intention and I was not taking control of my own destiny.
Life is what you make it
One of the things I want you to understand is that life is not something that just happens to you, it's something that you make happen. And the earlier you take control of your life, the more time you have to shape it into something that makes you truly happy and fulfilled.
When you're young the difference between taking control and going with the flow may not seem like much. But over time, your choices and actions will have a huge impact on who you become and the sort of life you lead.
Look at compound interest and how it works for or against you. The compounding effect makes debt harder and harder to escape over time, but, earning interest on the other hand brings in exponentially more each year.
This is no different to your path in life. You are able to make choices, habits and routines that accumulate and carry you to great heights. Or ones that become an anchor that gets heavier each year.
Longwinded, running through this life like it was mine Never settling, but setting every goal high One thousand burpees on the path to my own destruction or success But what is a mistake without the lesson? See, the best teacher in life is your own experience None of us know who we are until we fail They say every man is defined by his reaction to any given situation Well who would you want to define you? Someone else or yourself? Whatever you do, homie, give your heart to it And stay strong. Nipsey Hussle
Your journey begins now
So, my son, I urge you to start taking control of your life as early as possible. Find your passions and pursue them.
Set goals and work towards them with determination. Surround yourself with people who will support and inspire you. And never stop learning and growing.
The road ahead will be full of challenge and surprise, but I have faith in you. You are strong and capable, and I know that if you take control of your life and live it with intention, you will reach any height you can imagine.
Dad.