Veiviržėnų gimnazijos mokinė – tarp geriausių Lietuvoje: laimėta I vieta konkurse „Mes esame NATO“

Jurgio Šaulio gimnazijos gimnazistės Viltės STANKUTĖS, apdovanotos konkurso „Mes esame NATO“ diplomu ir prizu už geriausią darbą anglų kalba, laiškas

A Letter to Myself in Ten Years

Dear self,

I am writing this letter to you ten years ahead, with hope held carefully in my hands – hope for the world you live in, care for the society around you, and responsibility for the Earth that still carries us. I am eighteen, standing at the edge of adulthood. Each day, I become more aware that the future is not something we inherit, but something we construct ourselves.

If I had to describe the world today, I would say that we are not listening – not to each other or to ourselves. We speak loudly, argue fiercely, yet still repeat the mistakes of history. We protest and riot, demanding human rights in an age where algorithms sometimes seem more powerful than people. We want change without self-reflection and progress without responsibility. Yet history reminds us of a quiet truth: the smallest, most conscious actions create the greatest transformations.

Ten years from now, I hope the world has learned this lesson. I hope you are living in a world that understands security not only as military strength, but as human dignity. A world where safety means freedom, especially from war, misinformation, manipulation, or being erased or unheard. I hope technology has not replaced empathy and speed has not replaced wisdom. I hope global challenges like climate change, cyber threats, human rights, and political tensions have brought countries closer together rather than further apart. In that world, NATO matters.

Today, NATO is often described through numbers – troops, weapons, budgets, strategies. That language is necessary, but incomplete. As a teenage girl growing up in Lithuania, a country shaped by occupation, loss, and geopolitical tension, I understand that security is never guaranteed – it is maintained. NATO is neither a symbol of heroism nor a perfect shield against insecurity. History has taught us that no alliance can erase the past or promise permanent peace. Still, NATO creates conditions for a small country to plan its future instead of preparing for its disappearance. It allows education, culture, and civic life to exist without being overshadowed by fear. In this sense, NATO is a framework that works only when supported by responsibility, dialogue, and the willingness of its members to defend shared principles.

In ten years, I hope NATO has continued to evolve alongside the world it protects. I hope it understands that modern threats do not always arrive with tanks and uniforms. Some come through screens, lies, and silence. NATO’s future role is not only to defend borders, but also truth, democratic values, and cooperation. It must invest in cybersecurity, climate security, and resilience, and prevent conflict before it begins, because the strongest victory is the one that never requires violence.

I hope NATO remains united not because unity sounds impressive, but because division is dangerous. Unity does not mean agreement on everything. Disagreement is normal and necessary. What matters is the decision to stay in conversation, take responsibility for shared consequences, and remember why cooperation exists. From where I stand, democracy does not look perfect or powerful. It is slow, complicated, and sometimes frustrating, yet I would still choose it over systems that promise efficiency in exchange for silence. To remain relevant, NATO must defend not an image of strength, but the space to question, argue, and choose freely.

Still, this letter is not only about NATO. It is also about you and what you chose to pay attention to. I hope you did not grow used to injustice just because it happened far away or appeared on a screen, and that you did not look away. Living in Lithuania has taught me that freedom is not abstract. It can be lost quietly through exhaustion, fear, or indifference. Citizenship is more than voting or knowing facts – it is staying awake, asking uncomfortable questions, and caring even when it feels inconvenient.

I hope you did not stop believing in words – not as slogans, but as tools that explain, challenge, and connect. I hope you learned to think critically without becoming cynical and to care without burning yourself out. What matters is whether you understood that even small actions shape the world around you. Alliances can protect borders, but values survive only if ordinary people choose to carry them quietly and consistently.

I write believing that the future is listening. Make sure it remembers what you chose to stand for.

With hope,
Your younger self