Growing Up

Growing up is not the same as growing old. Everyone gets old as the waves of time erode our youth. This is the natural process though. We get old whether we want to or not, changing inside and out. However, this physical change of growing old does not mean we are growing up. You might ask, "If you don't grow up as you grow old, then how do you grow up?" For this, I will tell a story.

Since high school, a lot has happened to me. I've gone off to college, changed career paths a few times, and struggled a lot. Mental health is definitely a large part of this. I don't feel abnormal though. The past four years is when I feel that I've truly grown up. Not much progress was made before this time period and now I'm in the midst of growing up into the man I'm meant to be. I've slowly found the things I'm good or bad at, discovered the true meaning of friendship, and even came out of my shell in more ways than one. Breaking the walls that limit me has been a huge part of growing up. It creates more room for improvement. Unfortunately, for each step you can now take forward, there is another step that can be taken backwards. I've taken a large mixture of forward and backward steps throughout these past four years. Many of the steps that I have taken have been backwards. These steps came in the form of losing the ability to enjoy many things. Unfortunately, this is the depressing truth behind growing up.

As living beings, we change over time. Our bodies grow, our minds expand, our personalities develop. But growing old is still not growing up. You grow up when you have the small enjoyments of each day torn away from you by the brutality of this world we live in. Luckily, growing up also means finding new things to derive that happiness from. I haven't found it yet, but I'm sure that my journey will get me there soon.