Dear Best Friend,
Look at how far we’ve come! Our lives have been a roller coaster of a journey, and I’m so glad I’ve had you along the ride. From Netflix marathons to road trips, you’ve always been there. And I know we joke about it, but there’s truly no one else that could understand me and my insane ways the way you do. I’m so lucky. You’re beautiful, smart, and can make me laugh until I cry. You accept me in all my forms, whether I’m hype on a sugar rush, or on the verge of a meltdown. You inspire me to be the best me I can be. And don’t even get me started on all the fun we have together. Some people may need a flashy scene for a good time, but all we need are sweatpants, a dramatic Lifetime movie, and a pizza. I just love the fact that we’re completely content just being...
Lifestyle
Dear Ex-Best Friend,
Hi. It’s been awhile. I would like to say that I miss you, but part of me know that you probably don’t care. Part of me still hopes that you do though. I would also like to say that I’m sorry. I wish things didn’t end the way they did between us. There wasn’t room in our hearts to forgive at that time, and now too much time has passed. It’s too late.
But now, I would like to say I’m sorry for a number of things. I’m sorry that you have to answer questions about how I’m doing to your family and our old friends. I’m sorry that I call someone new my best friend. I’m sorry that I made you responsible for a lot of my secrets. I’m sorry that I didn’t care more. I’m sorry that we aren’t making all the memories we thought we would. I’m sorry for never uploading those...
3,086
Dear America,
I’m sorry. You entrusted me with your children, and I have failed them. Please know that I had the best of intentions. I didn’t want to leave a child behind. I wanted to help them win this race to the top. You asked me to test them, and I tested them. I gave them choices: A, B, C, D, and sometimes even E. I didn’t just test them though; I spent hours showing them how to test, and I prepared them for that by quizzing them. My quizzes and tests were rigorous, too, just like you asked.
I have to be honest with you, though: my heart wasn’t in it at first. I had this ridiculous idea that art and music and drama and activity breaks would help my students grow. Maybe it was all those years of allowing my students to be creative. To think, I once had my English class produce a...
2,433
As I walk out of my SAT and turn on my phone, I see that four more Israelis have been stabbed. This has become our sad new normal. I then proceed to order an Uber taxi home. Within a minute, I get a text message saying that my driver, Mohammad is on his way. Mohammad, he must be Muslim, I thought… Maybe as an American Israeli, I should have hesitated, it wouldn’t really be unwarranted, would it? Regardless of the driver’s religion, I’m a 5 foot tall, 17 year old girl, getting into a taxi alone with a stranger. Instead though, I was optimistic — I’d just started taking Arabic, and was hoping to strike up a conversation with my driver. What actually happened during my journey home however, far exceeded my expectations…
As I got in the car, Mohammed asked me where I was coming from. I...
2,418
Dear Taylor Swift,
Congrats on your wildly successful “1989” tour. While fans across North America are enjoying your sell-out performances, us baseball fans have a bone to pick with you.
Toronto Blue Jays - Taylor Swift Curse
I’m sure by now you’ve heard about the “Taylor Swift curse” that is victimizing Major League Baseball. First you were linked to the Houston Astros, who have gone from first in the West to barely clinching the second wild card spot, to blowing their clinching game in dramatic fashion on Monday.
Then you were linked to the Washington Nationals, who not only had their lights go out but also had an epic collapse that saw them compile a 32-38 record since your concert. The Nationals’ failure dropped them right out of the NL East race.
Then there’s the San...
2,796
Respected Modiji,
Few days back, while addressing a public rally in Bihar, a comment was made by you about my DNA. The issue has been troubling many of us since then. Now, as you are scheduled to visit the state again, I am writing to you on behalf of those who have felt hurt by your statement. Your words have been taken as an insult by a large section of the people of the state and beyond. Most of us also feel that coming from you, the comment is rather unbecoming of the office you hold.
But, this is not the first time that we have faced this. Earlier as well, your colleague and BJP leader, Mr. Nitin Gadkari had said that "casteism is in the DNA of Bihar". Interestingly, these are the same people who reposed their faith in you and contributed towards electing you to the highest...
2,610
Dear Coach Head,
Once in a lifetime, life decides to put someone on this Earth who truly shatters all expectations of what the perfect teacher is. That Monday of my sophomore year, I came into your classroom expecting nothing less than the typical strict, hard-faced history teacher that every student has seen in the movies; however, nothing could have prepared me for the teacher that greeted me at the door.
You were nothing short of phenomenal. Actually, scratch that-- I’ve come to find that there is no word in the English language adequate enough to describe you. You taught me a lesson the first day, and I’ve carried it with me ever since: “Don’t whine, don’t complain, and don’t make excuses.” Little did I know the multitude of life lessons you would instill in not only me, but...
3,353
Dear Sister in Christ,
I want to write you this letter to express my sincerest and heart-felt thank you for what you are doing, but not for the reasons you might think. I am quite sure there are many opponents of Marriage Equality who are writing you letters supporting your willful insubordination to the duties of your office in the name of Christ. To many Christians you are taking a stand for “righteousness” and, even if you are jailed or forced to resign from your office because of your actions, you will be celebrated through this country as a martyr for Jesus Christ. No doubt you will be offered a book deal, be invited on news broadcasts, and go on a nationwide speaking tour. The name “Kim Davis” has already been associated with the “Tank Man,” the brave man who ironically and...
2,457
Dear Minister-Président Rudi Vervoort,
Dear Brussels government,
On Wednesday 14 October 2015 at 11:59PM we will stop uberPOP. Although this was inevitable following a recent court order, stopping uberPOP impacts tens of thousands of people in Brussels who rely on Uber’s affordable services. It also hurts hundreds of Bruxellois counting on Uber to support their families.
Yet, professional services like our uberX platform can provide a way forward. Time to focus on where progress is needed: job creation, more transparency and accountability, and creating much needed alternatives to private car use in Europe’s second most congested city.
With 20% unemployment, many Bruxellois are desperately looking for a job, and many uberPOP partner-drivers and taxi drivers have told us they...
2,589
Dear Dr. Carson:
As a nationwide group of fellow freedom-loving health care professionals, we are glad to see your candidacy for President. We are gratified to have seen a change in your public statements on firearm policy since you entered the primary race. Along the way you have apparently become educated in the demographics and political philosophy of the American right to keep and bear arms. These are things your otherwise extraordinary career may not have prepared you for, and we thank you for making the effort to learn them . . .
Still, your recent remarks supporting restoration of funding for gun research to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) make us wonder if you know why Congress reined in the CDC’s gun control research in the 1990s.
Part of the...
2,446