By the time this piece is published, I will officially not be a teenager anymore. Years ago if I heard this sentence I think I may have had a mental breakdown, but that definitely is not the case now. At this point in time, after all the fear of growing up and being a real adult, I can say that I am excited for what comes in the future! So, whether you’re feeling the scaries about growing up, or maybe are just curious about how someone could possibly feel this way, keep reading for the advice I have to give.
Rewind
Growing up, I had always tried to act older than I actually way. I was told by every distant relative that I had a “wise soul” and started wearing makeup and worrying about my body early on. I had my ensure future planned out at the ripe age of 14, and everyday, hoped that my teenage years would speed up so that my journey could truly begin. Sometimes, I wish I could talk to my younger self and tell her to stop worrying about these things, but obviously that is impossible. So, I hope that if you are someone who is constantly looking to the future and forgetting the present, that you can hear the advice that I never got to.
I turn 20 this week and have been reflecting on a lot of grown-up things. For as much stressing as my younger self did, I sometimes feel behind in this process of adulting. Sometimes I forget that I am a sophomore in college and not a 16-year-old sophomore in high school. I have been thinking a lot about how I am supposed to graduate college, find a job, and get married soon. But again, this is me looking too far into the future and placing my stress on things that I shouldn’t be.
Fast Forward
Becoming restless just thinking of the daunting phrase “grown-up” doesn’t have to be what happens when you get to a certain age. Just as we all were as little kids being so excited to answer the question, “What will you be when you grow up?”, we can still be excited to answer that today. A big turning point in my journey to coming to terms with truly becoming an adult is knowing that everybody went through this same process. Not one grown-up, ever, just magically acquired all the things and information necessary to be an adult. It is all about trial and error! As we reach new milestones and celebrate our years on this Earth, we learn tricks and habits that will assist us in being successful in the future. In recent times, I learned how to fix a toilet and sign a lease! Nobody is born knowing how to do these adult tasks, but we learn.
In a week from now, I won’t be a teenager anymore… But, I will still have the same habits that I, a teenager, have currently. I will still have terrible shopping habits and will always decide to buy myself a little coffee when I am feeling down. Growing up is all about perception, so the first and most important step to accepting that growing isn’t as scary as you expected it to be is accepting that.