Since we can’t have all of our family and friends together for James’ birthday, we are asking you each to contribute a common gift, so that we will feel some unity even while living so far from everyone. We want to put together a collection of letters that James can open and read at specific moments in his life. Letters from you: his family, friends, and adoring fans.
We think this idea is especially fun considering how some children (not us, of course!) get tired of hearing their parents' advice and might appreciate hearing encouragement from another person that loves them and has their best interest in mind. How great would it be for James to hear a funny story from his aunt about how she wrecked her car (ahem... multiple examples available...) on the same day that he is overwhelmed with emotions about crashing his own? Or, how special would it be for James to read an inspirational letter about lasting love and making marriage work from his great-grandparents (married 58 years so far) on the night before his own wedding? Or, even a letter full of stories about his mom and dad when they were young, written by one of their friends? The options are endless…
So, your mission, should you chose to accept it (and we hope you will), is to write a letter. It can be one simple sentence, or many pages full of stories and advice. It can contain stories about you, or us, or whoever. It can be silly, or sweet, or informative. It can contain advice of what to do, or what not to do. It can be whatever you would want to say to James at that moment, or whatever you wish someone would have said to you.
Please mail us your letter in a sealed envelopes (they are for James' eyes only, after all) labeled with "James, read this when _____". We will give them to him unopened whenever that specific event arrives. And in the meantime, we'll store them in his treasure chest: 
We have listed several events that you can pick from if you don't have a specific event in mind, or you can write about any other event that you think is important. And it doesn't matter if different people write on the same topic, or if some topics aren't covered at all. Also, if you'd like to write more than one letter, please do! You can send all you want! The examples follow:
"James, read this....."
on your first day of kindergarden
on your first day of middle school
on your first day of high school
on your first day of college
before your first date
after your first date
on prom night
before your first day of work
on the day you move out of your parents' house
on the night before your wedding day
when you’re learning how to ride a bike
when you're testing to get your driver's license
when you have a big school project to do
if you've failed an exam
when you win your first award
when your first pet dies
when you loose/break something valuable
when you loose the big game
when you think your parents are being unfair
when your parents are embarrassing you
after you have your first car accident
when you fall in love
when you wonder if God is real
when you loose someone you love
when you don't know what to do with your life
after your first break-up
The details or specifics about what you write aren't important in us. They are all up to you. The important part is that there are several different views from several different people. All of you have had important roles in helping to mold and shape us into the people that we are, and we are so thankful that we were able to learn from your insight. Now, we hope that you will pass that on to our son.
Please send us your letter(s) before March 1st. We're hoping for a much larger response to Mission #2 than we had for Mission #1 (James' poor movie never even got made because only his Grambot and Mommy made videos)... so happy writing!
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