Some time ago, I came across a few tweets that touched on the subject of growth. Finding myself in need of those words, I wanted to share my own thoughts on the subject because it is particularly important for high school and college-aged people (or literally anyone) to hear.

Throughout our lives, we encounter difficult decisions, meet tons of new people, live through some pretty impactful experiences, make mistakes (and hopefully learn from them), like, love, despise... the list goes on. Our experiences as social beings are individually unique. However, there is something I would argue that we all share to some extent: a desire to be better and do better as we navigate through life.

As far as I know, no one wants to stay the same for the entirety of their lives. We come up with goals and dreams and aspirations. Part of that process simply comes from a desire for positive change. Generally speaking, an indicator of change in a person's life comes from growth in every day life.

Keeping all that in mind, I want this to be a reminder that it's okay to observe, to learn, and to change accordingly. You are not obligated to hold on to past trauma, toxic relationships (romantic or otherwise), or people (friends and family included) who bring nothing but negativity around you, even if you if love and care about them. It is okay to outgrow things in order to keep your mental health in check.

Growth is a critical part in a person's journey to self discovery and self love. In order to become the person you dream of being, some reflection must be done and actions must be taken. You must unlearn this idea of having to compromise yourself for someone else. In learning how to embrace change, people then have the ability to achieve what they want to achieve.