The Rougher Storms

I'm not going to ask you to imagine anything. Odds are, you are, have, or are going to experience this, or something similar in your life. So instead, I am going to ask you to reflect on something.

You recently left home, and the world is at your fingertips. Are you scared? Excited? Confused? You're all of it. It's your first day exploring yourself as a person. You've spent months and countless hours researching your next big move, only to find out that in this stage of life, you can't have a move. You can't get paid in small ways to do your dream job (at least not yet), and the perfect relationship you always wanted will not just fall into your lap. Truth is, there is a secret to the life you want when you're so young and free. The secret that everyone holds from you, contrary to what they may say, is that there is no secret. You have to enjoy where you're at. Embrace the failures, and savor the successes. Before you go searching for all of the things you think you need, now is the time to reflect on who you are, and what you genuinely want. It's the time to laugh when you have a minor set back, because it is only the way of the world. Whether you missed a bill, your car broke down, or you overslept your alarm on your first day of work—it happens. One day, you will be successful, and all of this will only be a fuzzy, humorous memory. Ironically, you will miss it. You'll wish it didn't skim by you so fast. The growing pains and fights, the laughter with your friends in the car at three AM when you're all so tired, the hugs and kisses your loved ones give you every day before they leave.

It's like when you were a young child, eager to grow up, and become an adult in the real world. To take the bull by the horns. Now, you miss the days of being so young and innocent. As silly as it may be, you miss believing in Santa and the Easter Bunny. Now, you live in a time where you're regrowing. Reinventing yourself. Establishing yourself. There will be the few times in which the memories are so blissful, you pray they never end. You'll be at a gas station with all the people you love as the sun begins to rise. You'll use points on the gas station's app to score some free food, because you have three dollars in your bank account. Then, as it always does, a song will come on as you sip on your energy drink. It'll be a song you somehow know every word to, but don't recall ever discovering. It just appeared in your life. Your best friend, who is driving, will turn the stereo up, and for that moment, in which you are eating cheap food and laughing, the earth will be still for you. And while what got you there may not have been so great, it'll be moments like that in which you thank God you're alive in the time you are. In times like that, you will be found in your most lost days. Starting from the bottom is almost never easy. Nonetheless, you'll miss it all. But you will find a gain as time goes on. You will find what you've been looking for. You'll have that dream job. Your acne will clear away. You'll be able to make purchases without points and deals because you're so broke. But, not a day will go by where you don't miss the little moments that you allowed to fly past you.

So, whether you are 14, 18, 19, 30, 40, or 80 years old. If you are trying to build yourself—I encourage you to cherish every minute you can while doing it. Remember, the roughest storms often have the most gorgeous rainbows.