We all have that one saying that our parents always tell us before we embark on an adventure or do something. It replays in your head every time you think about doing something, and your parents become a soundtrack in your thoughts. It's actually one of the most annoying things but something we become really thankful for later on in life.
I know when my dad taught me to drive he would always telling me things and when I did something while driving that was against what he said, I would hear his voice replaying in my head.
For example, when my dad would tell me to stop being a lead foot because I was driving 15 mph over the speed limit or when I would gas it during turns, he would always say do not gas it, just ease off the brake during turns or curves, and I was that child that still passed it every time because I love speed.
It is crazy to think that when I am driving, I love speed but when it comes to things being rushed in life now, I hate it. I wanted to grow up so fast and now that I am there, I wish every day that I could go back in time. I wanted to graduate fifth grade so fast, I wanted to graduate middle school so fast and then I wanted it to stop. I was that nervous little eighth grader that did not want to go into high school because I was scared.
I was ready for the "freedom" that high school had to offer but not for the growing up it had to offer. I did not want to start high school to save my life. I sat crying the night before my very first day of ninth grade and told my parents I was not going.
My dad started telling me a little story about a mouse, and I wasn't paying attention at first until he said "Now, Macy go find your cheese!" I remember sitting there thinking, "Wow, my dad has gone crazy," and my mom needs to stop telling me that I will enjoy these next four years that are coming up. I made my dad retell me his mouse story and that is when it really hit me.
He told me about this little mouse that was so used to his morning cheese being in the same place every day. He could always count on it being there because his parents would always set it aside for him. Well, one day, the little mouse went to his normal spot for his cheese and it was not there.
He stood there, waiting and wondering where it was. He went without if for a day and the next day returned to the same place expecting the cheese to be there on the new day. It was not, and the mouse's parents then told him that it was time for him to find his own cheese.
From that day on, the little mouse became an independent mouse and went to look for his cheese by himself. He was so used to the same old same old that it took this change to discover that he had to start doing his own thing. He had to realize that his cheese might not always be in the same place.
Life changes on the daily and after hearing this story, I quickly realized that I had to grow up and look for my own cheese. I had to go into high school and discover where my cheese was. I had to realize that life throws multiple curve balls at us, and we have to learn how to cope with them and move on. Life as I knew it was not going to be the same, and I had to learn how to do it alone.
After finding my cheese and it being in the same place for four years, it was different entering into college. This time entering into college, I gave myself this own speech on the morning of my first college class, "Macy, go find your cheese!" I was not afraid to look because I knew that my cheese had moved positions, and it was up to me to find that new place. Now, every time I embark on something new or huge in my life, I hear this little voice in my head, "Macy, you got this, now go find your cheese!"
The moral of this mouse story is that life is constantly changing and things are not always going to be the same or even handed to you. It's not meant to be that way. One must find their place in life and where their cheese has moved to.
This comes with learning how to drive, learning how to manage a job, school, or both and learning how to balance yourself and the world around you. One day, we are going to have to find our cheese when it comes to marriage, having children and adulthood in general.
This is just the start to finding our cheese, and I can't wait to find more. I really hate change but when I know good comes out of it, I am ready for it. Sometimes it can just take time. So go out there and find your cheese — it is always moving but it is just a sign of adulthood and growing up.
