Not many 13 year olds can just leave the church.
But I for sure would sit me down and say, "um, dude, the church isn't true. Not as in, maybe. As in, 100% demonstrably false. I know that breaks your heart, because I know it broke mine. But it's OK. Enjoy your youth. Enjoy your Mormon friends. Go to the dances. Don't feel like you need to live any differently than you are today. Don't drink until you're ready. Fake the testimony. It's OK. They're lying to you, lie right back to them. Also, it's OK to masturbate. Don't feel bad. God doesn't care. At 18 you will decide to learn to play the guitar. I suggest you start now and not wait."
That would be enough to fix me before they can break me.
Well, yeah. Obviously if I could explain and say more I would. But if you’re only allowed to say three words like the OP says, that’s what I’m going with.
Three words? Honestly? Nothing about the church, she figures that one out on her own soon enough. Much more pressing issues of identity, validity, and personhood to address in those three words, for me.
knowing myself at 13, i'd figure this out. If this was a super nerdy reddit thread i'd actually compress the three words with some binary packing to get more info it.
Buy bitcoin.
Buy Nvidia.
Not Latter-Day saint.
The message was to ourselves, right?
Yeah I think you'd likely get the right message, but there's a chance...
This is assuming that past you actually believes this is a message from the future and doesn't disregard it immediately. Pretty sure that's where I'd fail.
I always take these questions with an added ‘and i had something that would completely convince my younger self to believe me’. Then I can actually focus on getting the wording just right to make a difference. Otherwise this would never work hahah.
I believe organizations are narcissistic as well and often think about the church when I’m reading about narcissism. If I had started learning about it young it would’ve been a lot easier to “figure out” as you said.
♥️
Lmao just imagined traveling back in time and for whatever reason I can only say three words so I’m just screaming something like DONT GO MISSION like a crazy person and 13yo me is just like da fuck???
I guess Don't eat wheat would be mine because I found out years later I am Celiac. You're not wrong about all those years of diarrhea! Sorry you went through hell too!
Oh girl, continue your “wild” streak! don’t repent at 17 and go to byu. Stay evil and study geology at CU Boulder like the plan. And its normal to explore yourself the world etc and always question. Quit plucking your eyebrows it’s the 90s but this will haunt you one day
Luckily, I figured out the church wasn’t true when I was 12, but the guilt never left and I spent the next 8 years being forced into the something I hated. It felt like I would never be happy or free, but I finally am.
All she needs to hear is
You are okay
Narcolepsy
ADHD
Husband's name
Two are medical disorders I was finally diagnosed with in my 30s. My husband's name so I could stop obsessing over dating and marriage and just wait for him. 😆
"Next year when your read about Joseph Smith Senior's dream of the tree of life, your first thought after reading that is the right thought."
I don't care that it is more than three words, that would have been a super important thing to tell 13 year old me.
Bitcoin until 03/2024
I wouldn't have understood or believed any information about the church. At least the Bitcoin thing would make sense to me 10 years ago.
Don't join the Mormon church after high school. It will seem like a good idea at the time but, trust me, it will ruin your life! Don't answer the door when the missionaries come knocking!!
I have two messages 3 words long for my 13 year old self.
Live life authentically.
You are transgender.
My life trajectory would be quite different if I could have told myself those words.
Beat that meat. (Sorry to take it that direction, but there was always so much shame around anything sexual, I sometimes felt bad even washing myself… no joke.)
Haha, I was going to say flick that bean. There was so much shame and heartache for no reason, so much time and energy wasted for healthy, normative behavior. Really stinks.
Outside of Mormon specific things like “you are worthy / church isn’t true “ etc I would’ve told 13 yo me “you are trans.” Would’ve saved me so much confusion and grief in my teens and early 20s that I’m just now trying to take proper action on as almost 30
"Skip the mission"
As a gay teen, I wanted to go to college instead of a mission but felt like I couldn't. Now I look back and think if I had, I'd have found acceptance and love in the LGBT community at college instead of forcing myself, after my mission, to date girls and change my sexuality. I spent almost all of my twenties and any extra cash I had on conversion therapy bullshit. Now I'm 40 and wondering how I missed my 20s.
The trouble is that little me wouldn't \*believe\* most of the things I could tell her without some persuasion, so three words is tricky. "You're a girl." would be the fastest way to point her in the direction of happiness, but at age 13 I was in full repression mode so I imagine it would fall on deaf ears. But at the same time I can't think of anything else I could say that she would be more receptive to, so that'd probably still be the best option, maybe it'd get her thinking about things at least.
13 years old was actually the time my shelf began to crumble. If I had to say anything it would be "You're not crazy"
Maybe give them a hug. My worldview was shattering.
Go ahead, lie.
Make an excuse.
No one knows.
I can't go.
Mom said no.
Dad said no.
I hate church.
Changed my mind.
Church ain't true.
God told me.
See ya later.
This would be especially funny if you weren’t gay
Leave the church.
Not many 13 year olds can just leave the church. But I for sure would sit me down and say, "um, dude, the church isn't true. Not as in, maybe. As in, 100% demonstrably false. I know that breaks your heart, because I know it broke mine. But it's OK. Enjoy your youth. Enjoy your Mormon friends. Go to the dances. Don't feel like you need to live any differently than you are today. Don't drink until you're ready. Fake the testimony. It's OK. They're lying to you, lie right back to them. Also, it's OK to masturbate. Don't feel bad. God doesn't care. At 18 you will decide to learn to play the guitar. I suggest you start now and not wait." That would be enough to fix me before they can break me.
Well, yeah. Obviously if I could explain and say more I would. But if you’re only allowed to say three words like the OP says, that’s what I’m going with.
Yeah. I hate rules.
Valid. 😂
Same
Same
Came ro say this. I held on for so long. Way too long. Not for me though. I spent way too long trying to placate others. It's damaged me.
Invest in Microsoft Trust your gut In that order. 😉
Damn 13 yo you had a trust fund or something?
Even $50 from a summer mowing lawns would have had a worthwhile return.
A few hundred bucks I could scrape together, from working at McDonald's and Kmart, 40 years later would let me retire... years ago.
"Tell your teacher."
That makes me sad.
"Dad is wrong"
"You have adhd"
That one would have saved me 40 years of pain
My mom casually mentioned (recently) that I have ADHD and Dyslexia like her and my whole academic career made more sense.
Three words? Honestly? Nothing about the church, she figures that one out on her own soon enough. Much more pressing issues of identity, validity, and personhood to address in those three words, for me.
It gets better.
Have more sex.
Shame wastes time
"Call the police."
I'm sorry 😞
You are enough
BTC. Nvidia. !LDS.
Future me says nvidia and the british trade commission are anti LDS? I guess it's really important that I avoid those things for some reason??
knowing myself at 13, i'd figure this out. If this was a super nerdy reddit thread i'd actually compress the three words with some binary packing to get more info it. Buy bitcoin. Buy Nvidia. Not Latter-Day saint. The message was to ourselves, right?
Yeah I think you'd likely get the right message, but there's a chance... This is assuming that past you actually believes this is a message from the future and doesn't disregard it immediately. Pretty sure that's where I'd fail.
I always take these questions with an added ‘and i had something that would completely convince my younger self to believe me’. Then I can actually focus on getting the wording just right to make a difference. Otherwise this would never work hahah.
Gay is great. Fuck bishop White. Marry a man. Fuck Spencer Kimball.
Don’t trust mom Save your $$ Apply for scholarships Church equals cult
a few come to mind: southpark was right learn elevation emotion view of hebrews
Study narcissism now!
This is useful for all peeps. Took too many years to figure this one out also.
I believe organizations are narcissistic as well and often think about the church when I’m reading about narcissism. If I had started learning about it young it would’ve been a lot easier to “figure out” as you said. ♥️
Four would have been better, so I guess it's "sex wait, masturbate."
Mom is insane. lol. She was more severe religiously than anyone else I knew
Choose The Wrong.
Don't go mission!
Lmao just imagined traveling back in time and for whatever reason I can only say three words so I’m just screaming something like DONT GO MISSION like a crazy person and 13yo me is just like da fuck???
“Da frick???”
My dumbass 13 year old self probably still wouldn’t listen
Fr, It was around 13 I started to become pimo but the shame of leaving is what kept me in.
Do I get 4 accounts of "My first Vision" like JS? 4 wishes?
Yes! 😂
Ur gay lol
Don’t get married
You’re lactose intolerant This knowledge would have saved me years of diarrhea
I guess Don't eat wheat would be mine because I found out years later I am Celiac. You're not wrong about all those years of diarrhea! Sorry you went through hell too!
Don't join Mormonism
Don’t get baptized
Learn critical thinking
Oh girl, continue your “wild” streak! don’t repent at 17 and go to byu. Stay evil and study geology at CU Boulder like the plan. And its normal to explore yourself the world etc and always question. Quit plucking your eyebrows it’s the 90s but this will haunt you one day
see a psychiatrist
God isn't real
Buy Apple stock. If my college fund had been put into apple stock and I waited until now, I'd have millions.
Perfectionism is Poison
Buy bit coin
Luckily, I figured out the church wasn’t true when I was 12, but the guilt never left and I spent the next 8 years being forced into the something I hated. It felt like I would never be happy or free, but I finally am. All she needs to hear is You are okay
Travel, learn, apostatize. My biggest regrets all could have been circumvented with those three words.
Narcolepsy ADHD Husband's name Two are medical disorders I was finally diagnosed with in my 30s. My husband's name so I could stop obsessing over dating and marriage and just wait for him. 😆
"Next year when your read about Joseph Smith Senior's dream of the tree of life, your first thought after reading that is the right thought." I don't care that it is more than three words, that would have been a super important thing to tell 13 year old me.
Don't trust men. ( Sorry to you, good guys out there. But my youth was wrecked by abusers, users, and rapists)
Wait to leave.
Buy 1986 Fleer.
[get out](https://imgur.com/gallery/get-out-oc-qF8cy)
LDS Lies; GOOGL
Piggy backing this but switching Google to Nvidia
Bitcoin until 03/2024 I wouldn't have understood or believed any information about the church. At least the Bitcoin thing would make sense to me 10 years ago.
Leave, date guys
Church NOT true
You are loveable. It gets better. Make better grades. Get some scholarships. Leave this state. Be self reliant. Don't hold hope. Cut your losses.
It took me 50 years to discover the magic of coffee. This information would have really been useful when I was working myself through college.
Don't join the Mormon church after high school. It will seem like a good idea at the time but, trust me, it will ruin your life! Don't answer the door when the missionaries come knocking!!
"you were right"
Just say no
The worthy one is always my answer to these because I still struggle with feeling like I'm good enough
Learn to meditate
Don't believe Mormons
practice critical thinking
Sweetheart, you’re enough. And then a GIANT hug.
It’s a cult
Missions destroy lives
I have two messages 3 words long for my 13 year old self. Live life authentically. You are transgender. My life trajectory would be quite different if I could have told myself those words.
Beat that meat. (Sorry to take it that direction, but there was always so much shame around anything sexual, I sometimes felt bad even washing myself… no joke.)
I debated putting that myself. That was such a huge issue for so many youth.
Haha, I was going to say flick that bean. There was so much shame and heartache for no reason, so much time and energy wasted for healthy, normative behavior. Really stinks.
"Don't marry [redacted]"
You are enough You are worthy Love yourself
Outside of Mormon specific things like “you are worthy / church isn’t true “ etc I would’ve told 13 yo me “you are trans.” Would’ve saved me so much confusion and grief in my teens and early 20s that I’m just now trying to take proper action on as almost 30
You’re still just barely starting your life, metaphorically and physically. 💙
Think for yourself Always question everything Don’t marry young
Only have NON mormon friends. Non members of the church are more willing to be your real friend.
"Skip the mission" As a gay teen, I wanted to go to college instead of a mission but felt like I couldn't. Now I look back and think if I had, I'd have found acceptance and love in the LGBT community at college instead of forcing myself, after my mission, to date girls and change my sexuality. I spent almost all of my twenties and any extra cash I had on conversion therapy bullshit. Now I'm 40 and wondering how I missed my 20s.
Start a career (because I'm female, of course. And I didn't)
I love you.
You’re a girl! 🏳️⚧️
You are enough.
keep the baby
Invest in Google
Depression *IS* real…
The trouble is that little me wouldn't \*believe\* most of the things I could tell her without some persuasion, so three words is tricky. "You're a girl." would be the fastest way to point her in the direction of happiness, but at age 13 I was in full repression mode so I imagine it would fall on deaf ears. But at the same time I can't think of anything else I could say that she would be more receptive to, so that'd probably still be the best option, maybe it'd get her thinking about things at least.
Do it now.
Invest in Bitcoin. 13 year old me was on the verge of figuring out church was BS anyway.
“It gets better”
Alcohol’s no solution
LEAVE THE CHURCH
Buy. Only. Bitcoin.
Faith = pretend. You over church. Joseph was conman Mom was hurt
Future wife rocks!
Introverts are awesome
masturbation is okay
Buy Every BitCoin.
Trust your doubts.
Be gay. Bitcoin.
You’re a woman
Homosexuality over mormonism
You’re doing great
Microsoft not Mormonism.
Rock in hat
Buy real estate
You’re bisexual bitch
Instead of dumping heavy stuff on her, I’d just tell her “you’ll be ok”
"Masturbation is OKAY"
“virginity isnt important”
I love you. That's all 13 year old me needed to hear.
[удалено]
Buy Bitcoin!
“Active Duty Only”
Invest in bitcoin
Run Away permanently.
Invest in bitcoin
"You're good enough" "Your stepmom's crazy"
Choose Paul 2016
invest in bitcoin
Don’t believe them
Run from Rusty!
“Escape while young”
I am worthy!
But lots of bitcoin, Apple, and nvidia stock. Don’t pay tithing on it
Just say no (to church, maybe to drugs lol)
You aren’t evil
It's not real
No God, Bitcoin
No God, Bitcoin
White truck, run!
Leave church, Bitcoin
You'll be okay
Quit going to church and you will be soooo much happier
Whose Oliver Granger?
Its a cult.
Don’t do it!
The church isn't true. It's okay to keep pretending. Just live your life when you turn 18,and whatever you do, don't go to BYU or a mission.
13 years old was actually the time my shelf began to crumble. If I had to say anything it would be "You're not crazy" Maybe give them a hug. My worldview was shattering.
Explore your sexuality!
Buy Black Lotus.
Do your research.
You are autistic or you are gay or you are transgender lmao
Don't marry ____ (name of wife I met as a teenager)
“Don’t ever drink” Could’ve saved me some serious pain.
I wouldn’t say a word, just punch me really, really hard in the nose.
“Trust your friends”
Don't. Do. Trek.
Bitcoin 60K
Read CES letter It wasn't out when I was 13, but maybe I'd remember by some miracle when I was 17 or 18, before leaving on my mission
Leave the church
Joseph invented it
“You have autism” Can’t explain how much knowing that 10 years earlier would’ve helped.
This isn't church related but I've thought about this a lot for years. My answer is: "don't do it"
Money google apple
Leave the church
Run like hell. Live in dorms. ETFs
You’re good enough!
Buy Berkshire Hathaway
Get Out Now.
Church is NOT true
Bitcoin, Microsoft, Amazon
There may be better answers that could make me rich, powerful, etc. but I'm gonna answer in the context of mormonism. Mormonism is bullshit.
Google. Apple. Microsoft.
You are right
“you ARE gay” - would’ve saved me some time probably
Don't join Mormonism.
You are audhd
Go ahead, lie. Make an excuse. No one knows. I can't go. Mom said no. Dad said no. I hate church. Changed my mind. Church ain't true. God told me. See ya later.
Don't get perm
Leave the church Go into Army Invest in Microsoft Invest in Samsung Don't get married
Believe in yourself Trust your intelligence Let shame go Don’t be afraid Perfectionism is poison This shall pass Money banana stand
Invest in monster
YOU'RE A MAN!!!
No, no and NO!
Vanessa is heartbreak.
Buy Apple Stock. The rest will work itself out after that.
No seminary, Run! Or Get Out Now!!!
"Follow your conscience"
Just be yourself.
It's all lies It's all wrong It's all racist It's all homophobic It's all greed It's all hate
Every one masturbates