Dear Teen Tricia from Author P.J. Hoover (THE NECROPOLIS)
Dear Teen Tricia (PJ),
Did you know someday lots of people will call you PJ? These are your first and middle initials now. You know that really long impossible-to-spell Polish last name you grew up with? Well, when you get married, you’ll get one that’s way easier. But you’ll miss your maiden name so you’ll keep it for your middle name because it makes you you.
Teen P.J.! Circa 1986, rockin' the smurfs.
Anyway, I know I could write you a letter telling you all the things you should change or do differently or tell you how it really doesn’t matter if you’ve packed on five extra pounds (because eating disorders suck, trust me), or if whatever guy you think is cute doesn’t like you (he’s not worth worrying about). I could do that, and it would be fine and acceptable, but one thing I like about you is you’ve always tried to do things a little differently. (Like that time you thought wearing the garbage bag to school for the sake of fashion would be really cool. Yeah, like that.) So in that vein, let’s change it up a little. Let’s focus on some of the good things you did.
Teen P.J. in her cheer uniform! Circa 1985.
You were damn proud when you were elected captain of the varsity cheerleading squad. And you know what? You had every right to be proud. You set a schedule and you practiced every day. You prayed. And it happened for you. And contrary to so many young adult books out there featuring cheerleaders and their infamous bitchy captains, cheerleaders are not mindless bimbos out to steal your boyfriend. Being elected captain does not mean you have the best splits or look the most kick-ass in a short skirt. It means you excel at organization. It means you are respected by your cheerleading peers. It means the coaches think you are capable of taking control and being a leader. You knew all this at the time, and I’m proud of you for recognizing it.
Teen P.J. with her calculus study group. (The author is in the yellow shirt.) Circa 1987.
You know what else you were proud of? Being so darned good at math. Seriously, you were like genius material. You finished every test long before the rest of the class, and you got an A+. You rocked. And remember how you thought computer programming was cool and you were happy you were so good at it? Go, you! Those computer programming and math skills are going to land you an awesome career in electrical engineering that is going to help pay the bills while you start your writing career so many years later. (Yeah, you’re going to write books. I doubt one person who knew you would have ever guessed this.)
Teen P.J., far right, in full hippie ensemble. Circa 1986.
Good for you for having so much fun! Here are some fun things you did that you will smile about once you hit those upper years:
- Going to a Grateful Dead concert (yeah, thanks Mom and Dad for letting me go, but what were you thinking?)
- Telling people your name was Athena
- Wearing fishnet stockings and chauffeuring your friends around for senior prom when you and your boyfriend du jour broke up only a week before
- Waiting in line for the debut of STAR TREK: THE VOYAGE HOME. Live Long and Prosper.
- Reading Sophocles for fun
- Holding Calculus study groups at your house
- Tooling around DC
Teen P.J. in her beloved DC. Circa 1987.
Here are some things that will leave an impact on you for years:
- The girl you worked with at the bakery who ended up killing herself after her boyfriend died
- The food obsession. Give it up already.
- The girl who got raped freshman year
- The space shuttle Challenger accident
So, in short, just go on being you. Because everything about you makes you the person you are today who happens to be me. And I like me. She’s not perfect; she has her up days, and she has her down days. But she’s all mine, and I’m happy to work with what I’ve got.
-The non-teen Tricia (PJ)
Teen P.J. lounging in her favorite jeans. Circa 1984.
P.S. Here’s a tip: Buy Apple Stock. Take every bit of that Brenner’s Bakery paycheck and instead of spending it on LPs (because they are on the way out) sink it into Apple. By the time you write this letter, you will be a gazillionaire. Actually, still buy the LPs because you really enjoyed collecting those, especially the vintage DOORS ones. How about half the money on LPs and half on stock?
CBAY Books, October 2010
P. J. Hoover spends her days and nights writing MG and YA fantasy and is the author of the MG fantasy series THE EMERALD TABLET, THE NAVEL OF THE WORLD, and THE NECROPOLIS. When she’s not writing, she’s reading, playing Mario Kart, or hanging out with the family which includes one husband, two kids, one dog, and two tortoises. PJ used to design computer chips for a living but now writes full time in Austin, TX. She is represented by Laura Rennert of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency.
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Thank you so much, Miranda and Emily, for having me here today!
What a great letter to your teen self. (Do you think she’ll read it and buy those Apple stocks?)
We can only hope, Chris. Then I’ll be writing the letter from my condo on Tahiti.
Thanks!
Loving all the photos and kudos for setting people straight regarding cheerleaders. I wasn’t one (I was in band) but I could tell the ones at my school worked hard
Thanks, Sarah! It was something I worked really hard at. Thanks for reading!
Go, Teen Tricia! Love this letter–while it would’ve been awesome to have known you as a teen (and to get help with calculus), I feel blessed to know you now!
Go, Teen Tricia! Love this letter–while it would’ve been awesome (OSUM) to have known you as a teen (and to get help with calculus), I feel blessed to know you now!
The feeling is one hundred percent mutual, Jessica! And I’d have helped you in Calculus any day.
Yay for you, PJ! I like that you gave your Teen Self props for being herself. I also love that you worked so hard to be cheer captain and prayed and reminded us that, in the real world, cheerleaders are normal, nice people. And that some of them rock at calculus.
If I had to congratulate my Teen Self on one thing, it would that she never faught or pretended to be more “grown-up” than she actually was. She was cool with being a kid while it lasted, and I love that about my Teen Self.
Very cool, Zombie Girrrl! I think it’s so important to remember all the good things we did and to recognize that it’s okay to be proud of our accomplishments.
Love this PJ. I had a much more intelligent comment to make, but I just keep scrolling up to that first photo with the very va va va voom legs and forgetting what it was. So I’m just going to say: go you! *shakes pom poms* (Hmmm…pretty obvious that I WASN’T head cheerleader. Or cheerleader, period.)
LOL on the legs, Shannon! I could have seen you doing anything you wanted to do, and if it had been being a cheerleader, you would have been there.
Yeah, I’m not sure where that thing about cheerleaders being horrible got started. The ones at our school were really nice too (or at least as nice as the general population). I think cheerleaders get picked on because people can pick on them and not get in trouble because cheerleaders are seen as so resilient.
It’s a funny thought, Jill, to wonder how it all got started. I like the resilience theory. It makes me (us) seem so shiny and bouncy
Thanks for visiting!
Ah, terrific to see someone celebrate all the awesome that their teen self had going on! great letter!
Thanks, Elissa! Enjoying life is so much about celebrating ourselves.
Tricia, this letter rocks! I think affirming your teen self is also something teens needs to hear. It’s always okay to be you. Haha — just noticed a news update about Steve Jobs’ health is scrolling across the top of the screen as I write this.
Not laughing at Steve Jobs being in poor health. Just to clarify. It’s the coincidence of your Apple stock tip that makes me laugh at the timing of seeing his name right now.
I get it, Shelli!
Yeah, I think it’s really important for teens to know that life can’t be all work and that they have to have fun and that they can be proud of what they do and it’s okay to be cocky because that’s a lot of what being a teen is about. It helps make us who we are.
Thanks!