Dear David,

You said one time in class that you tend to wear your heart on your sleeve.  I would have never thought that about you.  At first, you seemed to me like you were trying to be the guy that never really showed his emotions and never really cared about anything.  But after you made that claim in class, I decided to pay more attention.  I soon realized many of my initial mistakes in my calculation of your personality.  It wasn't that you didn't show your emotions, it was that they surfaced with subtlety and were rather true, compared to being over dramatized and unauthentic.

When we talked in class, you felt relatable and had great ideas worth sharing, even if you felt your speaking skills paled in comparison to Jose's (but we all feel that way - Jose is just so damn eloquent.)  You have your own problems and fears, and you don't seem to hold back much, which is also why it's so relaxing to talk with you.

You have practically nothing to hide.

I do. 

So I wrote this to tell you what I've learned: Maybe it is okay to put a little bit of my heart on my sleeve so it can experience the light, instead of being forever trapped in the darkness that can sometimes be myself.

But I've been burned so many times, it's hard. So I keep running, and I keep hiding.

So what I tell you it to cherish that openness and vulnerability, but please be careful. I hate seeing people like you (and me many years ago) get hurt by the burning fires of hatred.

I hope your heart doesn't get burned by the nasty fires in this world,

K ❤

(Use those legs to carry you farther than you ever imagined Mr. Track Star)