I’ve changed since high school, and that’s okay.

Reflecting back on the three years that I have spent out of high school and in college, I can’t help but realize that the “high school me” would not recognize the “college me.” In high school, I was your typical “introverted extrovert,” where I was really only comfortable around my close group of friends. Others who really didn’t know me that well would probably describe me as shy, sweet, and probably just labeled as “normal.” I wasn’t extremely “popular” (I hate using that word), but I had my group of friends and we were rather well-liked as far as I know. What my other schoolmates didn’t know is that I really cared about what they thought. I was that girl who was completely uncomfortable going to school with her hair frizzy (as it always was/is), and with her outfit not up to standard.

That’s what is so wonderful about going to college: no one cares a single bit about how popular/unpopular you were in high school. It doesn’t even get brought up in conversations. It’s a clean slate. And that is one of the most important things that college has taught me; it is okay to change yourself for the better. I no longer spend so much time wondering what people think of me. Instead, I have come to realize that if some aspects of you don’t change during college, you may be doing something wrong.

Thankfully, college has taught me to not care what other people think. I doubt that many of my friends would now describe me a timid or shy. In fact, they might actually describe me as loud or obnoxious, which is completely understandable. I’ve turned into that girl who will dance in public or sing karaoke completely sober. I’ve turned into the girl who can walk outside wearing no makeup and have her hair incredibly and disgustingly frizzy, and you know what? It doesn’t matter. Become the person who makes jokes like no other and sings out loud. Get songs stuck in other people’s heads (it’s fun). Because if the way that you have changed does matter to some people, then they are the ones who have something wrong.

Don’t get me wrong, I am still the “introverted extrovert” that I have been my whole life. I still am most comfortable around my close friends. But, I have come such a far way that I feel like the way people perceive me now is totally different than the way people perceived me in high school. And it still takes some self-reminding to realize that it is okay.

So I say “Bravo!” to those who have changed for the better since their high school days. College is for finding yourself. So if you are a high schooler reading this, or a college student for that matter, don’t be afraid to change yourself to make you, and only you, happy.