A Letter to Sadie

By Aadya Gupta, B.A Programme

Design by Nandana

Dear Sadie,
I felt so validated when I first read about you, someone who also craves the same academic validation as me, a girl whose whole life was scoring nothing less than a O, A+ or A. At first, I saw my younger self in you, how I was in high school but then again you are in high school so I can't blame you for that. Reading about you was like looking directly in the mirror. Seeing you continuously running towards external academic validation is what made me write this letter. I was in the same position you are in. I feel that constantly craving and running towards academic validation can consume a big chunk of your being. Somewhere down the line, you realize that all of that desperation for external validation has made you weak and you are not that strong girl you pretend to be. Somewhere along the line, you realise that all along what you needed was your own validation, self-affirmation, that feeling of "yes I am doing good!"

The constant comparison you made with Julius was quite unhealthy for your own good. So was you playing the goody two shoes and suppressing all your emotions. Which led you to then pour them out by writing unsent emails. Now, those were some disastrous emails, so let's not go there, shall we? But I feel glad that the emails got out because that showed the real Sadie and not the Sadie hiding beneath the cloak of perfection, which in turn gave you a good life lesson - it's okay to be imperfect and that not everyone can be fond of you. There will always be a certain crowd out there who will not even like the way you breathe, but that's how life works. This feels like a letter I would have addressed to my younger self, but because no one ever did, here's one for you! Best of luck in your future endeavours Sadie because you deserve all the O, A+, and A’s in the world ;)