Dear People Who Play It Safe,

Hi, it's me. The person who terrifies you. No, don't worry, you've never admitted it completely. No, as they always say, actions (or, in this case, reactions) speak louder than words.

I didn't mind that you played it safe; I like talking to different people, because they help me learn something new. I learned the way you wanted to keep your life contained, in the net of safety, with no room for error or, in my mind, fun. You want to do "adventurous" things, like travel, but you want to make sure they're safe and touristy. You're content with staying in the same place your whole life, permanently. You're content with having a basic job and making money and all the other things that are expected of us. For a while, it was something I just accepted, because I know I don't have the most "average" plan, and I tried my best to never judge you on what you wanted to do, because I knew that would make you happiest.

Yet you look at me sideways when I talk about all the things I want to do. You stare in disbelief when I say I want to live in a city I've only been to once. Why do I want to live abroad? Why? Because, to put it lightly, I'm young, unmarried and have my whole life to be confined to "normalcy." You don't know what to say when I say I want to intern and live by myself in a city I've never been to before. How will I ever mature if I never spread my wings? You think it's unrealistic not to have a set plan for the next two years, to which I always retort, "a lot can happen in two years." Because even though it may seem like I'm always dreaming, I'm always dreaming with concern for the most important people in my life in mind first. No matter what I wanted to do, from tattoos to wanting to buy plane tickets to Anywhere-In-The-World, it was always met with disdain and judgement.

Yes, much to your discomfort, I have a plan, and yes, it's unconventional. I don't say these things to cause conflict, or to purposely make you feel like you need to decide every waking moment of my future for me; I say these things because they're how I feel. I say them because I know you can't tell a lifetime full of stories if you haven't lived a little. This isn't a letter telling you how to live your life, it's a letter telling you that I am going to live mine with no regrets, completing my dreams as if they were a never-ending checklist.

You did teach me something new, you taught me that I never want to live a life as black and white as yours. I want to live my life in color.

XOXOX,