First and foremost, changing is a part of becoming who you are. If you don’t change as a person and mature into a better version of yourself then you’re not growing. To those who have said that I’ve changed “too much” and “I’m not the person I used to be,” all I have to say to that is I’m sorry. I’m sorry that my maturation and growth has affected you personally. I’m sorry that you might not like who I have become. However, personally, I could not be happier with who I have become. It took me more than two years to figure that out and once I did, I was able to see who is truly important to me and who I can be myself around.

College will allow you to experience new things and allow you to be independent. You will be around new people and in a new place. It truly helps you mature into a better version of yourself because it allows you to grow. Personally, my first year at college helped me grow and become who I am now. I’m about to go into my sophomore year at college and I couldn’t be more excited. I know the people who accept me for who I am and those are the people I want in my life. Those are the people who will continue to help me change and will continue to help me grow into someone I can be proud of. That is important to have in college and without that it’s going to be hard to mature and grow. My friends are some of the most important people in my life; people who will be there for me in the long run - so yes, I'm going to keep them around. Family will always be there and will always be important to me. It is my friends and family who have allowed me to change and become who I am.

I’ve matured a lot over the last year and yes I have changed a lot. But that does not have to be a bad thing. To those of you who have said “You’ve changed a lot” as an attack towards me, I’m sorry but that hurts. Becoming who I am and allowing myself to be proud of who I am was a long and difficult process, so someone using that as an attack is hurtful. I may “only be 18” now, but I have learned a lot throughout my experiences. I’ve completely accepted who I am and that is truly something to be proud of.

I give everyone in the LGBTQ community props for being able to accept themselves and be who they are without hesitation because it is hard to do and hard to figure out. Struggling to figure out your own sexuality is something only a portion of the world can relate to and it’s something that can be very difficult. Going from thinking I was straight, to questioning if I liked girls, to thinking I was bisexual, to finally coming to terms with the fact that I was gay is something that was very hard on me and everyone else who went through the same process. Anyone who says that I have changed too much does in fact hurt me because I am proud of the change that I went through because it has allowed me to be fully be myself.

Without change, are we really even growing?