A Younger Me, #TheGallery

A Younger Me #TheGallery

I’m joining up with The Gallery this week for the first time – this week’s theme is A Younger Me.  Luckily most photos of me from yonks ago are stored away in the loft!  This photo is from 1st August 2004.

A Younger Me, #TheGallery

This was my 10th wedding anniversary (with my ex), we were on holiday in Cuba, staying at Sandals.  We had a wonderful holiday, I loved the place. When we landed in Havana the airport TV screen’s had a Fidel Castro speech on a continuous loop. Walking around Havana was a weird mix – on one street you would be surrounded by beautifully maintained state buildings, turn a corner and you’d be in an area of decay, wonderful houses, falling apart.  It was an amazing place.  We were based in Varadero, a very different kettle of fish, but with a beach that went on for miles.

A Younger Me loved exploring Cuba, A Younger Me was curious to get behind the government rhetoric, A Younger Me would have loved to spend some time with a real Cuban family.

I look at this photo now and am struck by a few things.  We NEVER did the holiday balcony shot – so I have no idea why that night was different.  Not our kind of photo at all, in fact, even then, I was normally behind the lens.  A Younger Me was happy on that day, I didn’t have a perfect marriage, things weren’t brilliant, but I had no idea that my life would implode 2 and half years later. A Younger Me had no idea of the pain to come.  A Younger Me believed in forever and fairy tales, A Younger Me trusted easily and had no idea of the real truth.

A Younger Me wearing glasses!! In those days I rarely wore contact lenses.  It seems strange to look at me in glasses now. These days I live in contact lenses.

A Younger Me with a super flat tummy! Those were the days!  A Younger Me with hopes and dreams that are a lifetime away from my hopes and dreams today.

I wish I could prepare A Younger Me for the days ahead, make her stronger, make her walk away sooner, make her believe in herself earlier, tell her that she will be ok.  I wish I could tell A Younger Me that one day she’d be changing nappies, would be wee’d on from a great height whilst being giggled at, would share her love of planes, trains and books with a wonderful little boy.  I wish I could tell a Younger Me that she could be a Mum, not a perfect Mum, but a Mum who is loved and loves.

34 thoughts on “A Younger Me #TheGallery

    1. I would love to visit Cuba and I’m glad you enjoyed it. There is so much I wish I could have told my younger me too!

  1. So glad you got your happy ending with your little boy in the end, but sad that you had to go through a lot of pain to get there.

  2. What a lovely post. Life is all about learning and moving forward, and there are definitely things I would like to tell my younger self. But, I know she wouldn’t have listened, and I probably wouldn’t be who I am today if she had. So glad you got your happy ending xx

  3. A lovely post – like reading a story. You said a lot in not that many words. Sounds like you’ve lived an interesting life and though there has been pain in it, things have worked out. You look very glam in the photo too!

  4. What a very eloquent and thoughtful post. I do hope that the slightly ‘Older Me’ is happy too….if slightly bruised?

  5. Wow these A Younger Me photo posts are all very touching and deep. Its amazing what emotions old photo’s can stir up. So glad you had a happy ending x

  6. Life is surely full of ups and downs but they do make us the person who we are. I too would have loved to tell the older me a few things but that would have changed the equation of life and things now would be different. May you have many more happy years with your little one

  7. you look very glam and smart. Great figure as well. I am 55 and so wish I was as slim as my younger self was lol

  8. What a great emotive post, I like to think that every experience good and bad shapes us into who we are… Love Cuba too, although I haven’t been for many years. I imagine it has changed a lot since I went back in 1999!

  9. I believe we have to experience both the good and the not so good times to make us the people we become. Lovely post.

I'd love to hear from you and try to reply to all comments