It was Christmas Eve and my co-workers and I sat in the parking lot of our job talking for hours. We talked about everything from relationships to politics. Once we reached the touchy subject of politics, it seemed our parents all had the same viewpoints or thoughts on things. Very old-school, reserved, and closed minded in their way of thinking. After talking with them, I realized how important it is to forge your own opinion on things.

Growing up, you have people from your family and your friends influencing the way that you see things or what you believe. As you get older you become involved in your own life experiences and I think it's important to know that it's okay to go a separate yourself from the thoughts people have created for you. For example, for most of my life I grew up as a Christian. I went to church every Sunday with my mom, read the bible, and even got baptized at 12. During that time, I felt I needed to do those things because that's what the people around me did and that was the only way to be happy after I wasn't on this earth anymore. While I don't regret this part of my life, I felt that I was living a fake life. It was like a pressure to hold up this life that I knew wasn't for me.

I started to question a lot of things and I realized there were many things I didn't agree with as a person and what I believed in. Now, my mom still goes to church and she still prays over me which I really appreciate because that's where her faith lies and she connects with it. For myself, I have developed my own path of spirituality where I finally feel that I am living a more genuine and authentic life. This is just one example of where it's important to sit down with yourself and reflect on what you want aside from what your parents or friends think is the right way to live. Just because your parents are republican doesn't mean you have to be. Just because your friends like rap music doesn't mean you have too. It's important to find what sets your soul on fire, not the person next to you.

It can be hard to break away from what you have been around your entire life, but there is something beautiful in transforming into your own unique person.