Before Graduation: Write to Yourself a Few Years Out
The last days of school are packed with ceremony: the thesis defense, the class photo, the farewell dinner, the empty dorm room. Then the noise fades, and it hits you — some things never got said, and some feelings will be gone if you don't write them down now. Every June, graduates come here to write: to themselves three years out, asking whether the job turned out anything like the dream; to the roommates they lived with for four years, with a pact to open the letters together in five; or simply to seal up "how it feels to stand at the school gate right now" and mail it to their thirty-year-old self. Letters written at graduation have a rare kind of honesty — life hasn't taught you to hedge yet, so you say what you mean. Below are letters graduates chose to share. If you're counting down your last days on campus, don't just take photos. Spend twenty minutes writing this summer down; the future you will be glad you did.
How to write this letter
- Record a few specific "last times": the last lecture, the last cafeteria meal, the last late-night talk before lights-out. Details hold their value better than feelings do.
- Write down where you're headed and what worries you: which offer you signed, which city, what keeps you up at night. Years later, this is the part you'll compare notes with.
- Write one to a roommate or classmate too — add their email or phone number and pick a date to open them together.
- Ask your future self the hard ones: are you still in touch with these people? Any regrets about the path you picked?
Real letters from the vault
296 public letters毕业了.
一年了吧，还记得当初刚进入这学校军训的日子吗？是否成熟了。和同学的关系好了吗？还是依旧无人问津，一个人走过呢。希望这一年来别再那么孤独吧....
用户2vQs3w
2016.11.28
毕业的那天。我是否还是我
假如你还没表白就去吧！要毕业了！假如你没有梦想，那就从头开始！假如你不爱了，你特么是傻逼。滑板，请不要放弃他，他陪伴着你。记得你的女神（杨94）
年少二十三
2014.06.15
写给你，未来的我
hey，未来的我：不知你现在如何，毕设应该成功了吧？一切我还以为无比揪心的事对你来说是否都什么也不算。我要努力成为你，所以请你也变得很棒好吗？
SidneyDeng
2013.04.07
毕业季
曾经有个少年可以将一切送给你，可是他再也不会回来了。我多想化作人间烟雨一直陪着你啊。真不知道我能不能喜欢你一辈子，想想就真有趣啊。
用户6851592435
2018.11.14
Ready Set Science
Congrats making it to sophomore year!Don't be sophomoric!!!
戴鹰酱面具的兔
2020.02.12
20150609
老婆，恭喜你答辩过了，基本上所有事情都完了，你可以好好玩了，感谢你让我知道了爱的滋味，好好的。希望你开开心心，快快乐乐。
大屁飞
2015.06.10
至即将毕业的我
反正也是我自己我就随便说了吧，我希望能不忘记初心都继续坚持下去，现在粉丝多少了啊，不会还是只有一千多吧
n8511
2023.05.08
你好明天
明天的我你好，当看到这封邮件时你已经结束了本学期的所有课程，你准备好迎接期末考试了吗？准备好即将离开大学校园了吗？
歆沫
2018.12.24
嗨又是我 这次照片很丑嗨
臭嗨 你这个时候高中毕业了哈 是不是很爽 一个月麻烦赚两万⊙∀⊙？记得去发广告扇 不发我甘您娘 好吧 不能这样
不可负栎栎
2018.09.06
你大学毕业了
现在是4年前，高考刚刚结束，4年后的你是什么样的啊？还在喜欢SHINee吗？他们还好吗？已经是14年老人团啦。
金钟铉de小情人
2017.06.09
给自己大学毕业的一封信
找一个漂亮的女朋友，认识更多的人，学好自己的专业出来找到工作💼，稳定上班，和同事一起玩。结交值得信任的朋友
2544418834
2024.03.26
for future xinky part.43
第四十三天，这次没忘了ㄟ( ▔, ▔ )ㄏ考试希望考好点这毕业考不知道会是怎么算的3.28 21:26
过去的星奇
2017.03.28
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I write to myself or to my classmates?
Either — or both. Writing to yourself is the classic; for classmates, just add their email or phone number. Whole dorm rooms often write together at the farewell dinner and agree to open everything on the same day in five years.
How far out should I send it?
Three to five years is the sweet spot — long enough for life to change, short enough that the bond still holds. Some send theirs to a reunion date ten years away.
What if my email changes in a few years?
Every letter has a 6-digit claim code that works no matter what — and on delivery day the system sends both an email and a text, so you're covered twice over.
Before Graduation: Write to Yourself a Few Years Out
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