Have you ever looked back on your life and wondered how much you’ve changed or if you even changed at all? Looking back through old pictures or looking through yearbooks or through social media, you think about where you were at that point in your life to where you are now. You go through life where you constantly go through changes, even if you don’t know you’re going through them. Some changes you can go through are; friends, moving, schools, sports, and you yourself.

Looking back now I’ve noticed I’ve gone through a lot and I’ve come along way, but I think I’ve made out okay. Growing up my family moved around a lot, being the new kid was always hard. Going to 5 different elementary schools and constantly being known as the new kid was never fun, but making friends was kind of easy but then moving what seemed like a few months later was hard. It got to a point where before moving to Warwick from Coventry, I no longer wanted to move, it took my sisters to keep trying to convince me into moving.

Finally, I had enough of it and went to talk to my mom, I told her that if we’re moving it has to be our last move. I just hated constantly being the new kid and making friends, just to end up moving again. She said that it will be and it was until recently (last year).

When it comes to school, it’s always changing each year. Every year new people come and there are those who leave due to different reasons. Those who leave either leave to move on to the next grade, they move, or they graduate. You get to say goodbye to the friends you made through that year, but you get to make new friends with the newcomers.

After graduating, you get a yearbook and for some schools you get one after each year, this is good for you to write to your friends about the year you’ve had and say what you want them to know. For me, I got a yearbook after graduating 6th grade, along with a yearbook after each grade from 7th to graduating high school. Looking back, I can see how far I’ve come since elementary school as well as middle and high school. Reading through what people wrote to me is emotional especially from those who are no longer apart of my life anymore.

When it came time for high school, I was terrified about being there. The one thing that did help me a lot through high school was joining the soccer team. Soccer has always been my favorite sport to play and joining the school's team helped me a lot. It helped me keep sane through the 4 years I was there. I was never one for the competitive part of the sport, I was always in it for the pure joy of the game.

I made friends through those short years and I’m happy with those friendships. Although, while playing I felt like most of my teammates didn’t really like me, I felt like they liked my younger sister more. She was a better player than I was, I enjoyed my time and enjoyed it with those who did like me regardless how good or bad of a player I was.

The biggest change many people go through is friends. It’s weird to think about the amount of friends you actually go through over time. For me, thinking back I see the amount of friends who left through the years. For me, it’s always hard to tell who actually likes me or not. I’ve had friends who have literally walked out and not say anything. I’ve also had a close friend, who I thought would always be there for me, tell me she no longer wanted to be friends with no explanation on why.

The friends that I have now, I never would’ve thought I would have and I am so happy they came into my life when they did. I have friends who have come and stayed and proved to me that not everyone leaves. Even with the friends who prove to me that they are here to stay, I still second guess myself and question everything. I always feel like they’ll find someone better and they’ll leave.

Overall, the biggest change someone goes through is the change themselves. However, you yourself go through all of these changes and a lot of the time you don’t know nor do you notice. (The changes you go through would be your weight, your attitude towards people and your personality overall.) I, myself didn’t notice how much each change in my life affected me until people started telling me and pointing it out. I have noticed it little by little, but it still feels like I haven’t changed even though I know I have.

My attitude towards people over all has changed. I have learned to not let people in close too fast. I have also learned to not let people take advantage of me, I keep learning to say how I feel when I need and want to, regardless how people may take it. I have learned that people do leave and you can’t stop them, you have to let them go because if they truly were your friend they’d stay and talk it through rather than just leaving with no regards on how it’d be for you. Personality as a whole is a big change. Your personality changes as time goes on in general, it’s hard to notice and it’s even harder to explain.

The biggest change I saw in myself, after being told as well as asked by a lot of people, was my weight. I have always felt bad about my weight, I went from being skinny all the way from elementary to middle school. Then after eighth grade going into high school, I had gained weight. After high school and little into my college years I started to lose weight.

However, I never noticed I lost any weight until those close to me started to notice and ask if I have. I also looked back at pictures and noticed that I really have lost weight. Even though I still don’t believe I lost weight at all and I still feel “chubby,” my confidence with that is slowly changing. I’m beginning to come to terms with accepting that I’m losing weight.

With all this change, I know I’ve come a long way and I know life will always be changing, but I’m ready for it. Accepting that people change and you change constantly will help you in the long run. So now I ask you this, how have you changed? How will you accept it and overcome it? Are you okay with the change?