Do you recognize? In the pic on the left is the eminent actress, the star of ”Desperate Housewives” Eva Longoria . And on the right is her son Santiago. “You look just like the son you will someday have,” says 48-year-old woman, looking at her childhood shots.

Especially for the PEOPLE Beautiful Issue, the actress wrote a letter to herself in her childhood, when she was a little girl, in which she told how her upbringing on the farm hardened her character, and how this hardening was useful to her in times of dizzying success and failure. The letter begins with the actress marveling at how much she looked like her 4-year-old son Santiago when she was his age.

“Wow, you look just like the son you will have, Santiago (you will call him Santi),” she writes. “I don’t want to talk too much because I don’t want to risk my words changing you and your decisions, but your life will be fun … Everything that happens: failures, mistakes, heartbreak, disappointments – all this will shape you. Always maintain your self-esteem. Always listen to yourself, be in tune with yourself, and value every situation and every relationship you will ever have.”.

Recall that the star gave birth to her only son, Santiago, when she was already 43 years old. The long-awaited motherhood completely changed her life. Longoria admits to being a strict mother and maintains strict discipline.