I love myself to a fault, but that doesn't mean I treat myself right. I use my present self; I am my own gold digger. I make plans without considering my need for sleep. I make myself eat what I want now, without thought to nutritional value. I please myself when I want, ignoring the pain in my wrist and the weakness in my forearm.
At this rate, my future self will be fat, broke, sleep deprived, and unable to use my right hand or arm to do anything.
I have found a solution to helping myself. I visualize myself as either my past-self or my future-self. I feel far removed from that person, so I can be a little more compassionate and considerate of his or her needs. When I think of my past self, and what that person would have wanted in the future, which is now, I feel like taking better care of myself for that earnest, eager, clueless, nerdy child who did not anticipate becoming me. I want to become somebody that innocent fuck would have wanted me to be. But then again, if my parents hadn't forced my past-self to do something other than play Pac Man and drink Kool Aid, I would not have even become what I am today.
Then I fast forward to my future, to myself as an elder if I am granted so many years. I imagine my wizened face and wish for peace, health, and comfort. I look to this figure and negotiate ways to maximize my future value while still staying rooted in my present. She tells me I don't need everything right now, whether it's experiences, food, money, or sex; I wonder if she is right. I wonder if she will be there waiting or whether she will be swept away by unforeseen disaster or by my own present recklessness.
