In college, it feels like there is a strange moment in your life when you realize you are no longer who you used to be. All the clothes, the routines, even the way you speak, it all feels slightly different. At first, it might feel a little unsettling. You start to miss the version of yourself who had simpler dreams and fewer worries. However, slowly, you start to understand that change is not a loss, it is proof that you are living. In college or your early twenties, everything shifts: friendships, priorities, even how you define happiness. It can be uncomfortable, but it is also one of the most beautiful parts of becoming your own person.
Throughout this season of change, I feel like I have learned that transformation is not about losing who you were, it is more about becoming someone you needed all along. I think what no one tells you about growing up is that change does not always feel good right away. Sometimes it looks like drifting from people you once felt inseparable from, or realizing that things that used to make you happy don’t anymore.
Recently, I have started to find myself not thinking about lost friendships that once used to feel like one of the worst heartbreaks of my life, because I have come to realize this has continued to shape me into the person I am now. I feel like I have learned that growing apart from certain people or routines does not mean something went wrong, it just means you are evolving in different directions. Change asks you to let go, even when you don’t feel ready.
Once I stopped fearing change, I started noticing all the ways it was shaping me for the better. The hardest part is realizing that people change, too. You might find yourself on a different path than someone who once felt like your other half. It is easy to feel guilty or nostalgic, but outgrowing people does not mean you have failed them, it just means you are both becoming who you are meant to be. And if I am being honest, it hurts. However, it is also kind of beautiful to know that you are both still growing, just in different directions.
I believe that rediscovering yourself happens quietly. It becomes a part of your solo walks to class, all the late-night journal entries, the playlists you make for no one but you. You start learning what feels good now, what peace, confidence, and happiness actually look like for you in this new chapter of your life. And the best part? You realize that change is not taking anything away from you. It’s just giving you another chance to meet yourself again, this time, on your own terms.
Looking back now, I feel genuinely happy about the person I am becoming. I think for the first time in a long time, I’m proud of how far I’ve come and at peace with the things I’ve had to let go of. Every version of me has led to who I am today, I believe I have become stronger, softer, and more grounded in who I am. The feeling of change no longer feels like something to survive, but something to embrace. I truly believe I have become the person I was always meant to be, and that realization makes every moment of growth feel worth it. So the next time you feel like everything around you is changing, remember that this is all a part of growth, and becoming the person you have always been meant to be.Â
