It's me, your older self. I know, I know, crazy, right? Imagine getting a letter from your own future? I wouldn't believe it either, not before all this.
We're in the year 2023. You wouldn't believe the world we live in. There's this thing called the internet, where you can see and talk to people across the globe in an instant. It's like a dream come true for a kid who loved to read as much as you did.
The world's a different place now. We still have wars, but they're not the same kind. There's still hate and prejudice, but not like the kind you faced. And the world is trying to learn from its mistakes, trying to build something better.
But I'm writing to you not about that. I'm writing to you about you. About the boy in that train, the one who was losing his faith, the one who was clinging to the last embers of hope. I'm writing to you because I need you to know you didn't lose.
You survived. You wrote your story. You spoke out against the horrors you witnessed. You gave a voice to the voiceless. And because of you, the world, in its own clumsy way, is trying to do better.
Don't let the darkness steal your hope, Elie. Don't lose sight of who you are. You are a survivor, a writer, a beacon of light. You are a testament to the human spirit's resilience.
And remember, the night always ends. There is always dawn.
Your older self,
Elie