What does growing up mean to you? Does it or should it rob you of all the intrinsic qualities that a human is supposed to have? Of the warmth, the empathy, the silliness quotient that sneaks in naturally when you are with people you grew up with, the joy of connecting with a long lost friend or acquaintance, of basic courtesies that is expected when a certain level of communication has been established, the list seems endless.
Yet, these qualities are lost on certain people when they reach a certain stage in life. When they can no longer connect to that part of life they grew up in, relate to people who were once their companions, relate to emotions, traditions or a belief system that they were once a part of. They call it growing up. They also call it independent thinking, living and maturing.
But, of what purpose is such grown-up attitude or maturity if you cannot look back and laugh. If you do not have someone you can share nostalgia with. If you cannot connect the dots in your life and the sense of void created by people who got left out on your journey seems bigger than the sense fulfillment derived from the ones who joined you.
True, people grow in many ways, change in many other ways and that is the way life is. It is also needed to discard excess baggage, disconnect or distance self from ones that no longer fit into your way of thinking to maintain a sane existence. But life has a way of leaving its scars. Of reminding you of the past connects, relations, mistakes, friends, acquaintances, embarrassing moments, happy moments, and sad moments. How you deal with these scars define you as a person. How you've dealt today will be very different from a few years ago.
I'd say if you are a better person that you were a few years ago, you are growing. If you are able to forgive yourself for the little faults in you, you are growing. If you are able to oversee the failures and take a step to correct your mistakes, you are growing. If you're willing to oversee the others' fault, you've truly matured. If you have earned well-wishers along the way who are genuinely happy to see you grow, you've succeeded, but if you've also managed to keep and value the ones who were once a part of your journey, you've then truly succeeded.
Yet, these qualities are lost on certain people when they reach a certain stage in life. When they can no longer connect to that part of life they grew up in, relate to people who were once their companions, relate to emotions, traditions or a belief system that they were once a part of. They call it growing up. They also call it independent thinking, living and maturing.
But, of what purpose is such grown-up attitude or maturity if you cannot look back and laugh. If you do not have someone you can share nostalgia with. If you cannot connect the dots in your life and the sense of void created by people who got left out on your journey seems bigger than the sense fulfillment derived from the ones who joined you.
True, people grow in many ways, change in many other ways and that is the way life is. It is also needed to discard excess baggage, disconnect or distance self from ones that no longer fit into your way of thinking to maintain a sane existence. But life has a way of leaving its scars. Of reminding you of the past connects, relations, mistakes, friends, acquaintances, embarrassing moments, happy moments, and sad moments. How you deal with these scars define you as a person. How you've dealt today will be very different from a few years ago.
I'd say if you are a better person that you were a few years ago, you are growing. If you are able to forgive yourself for the little faults in you, you are growing. If you are able to oversee the failures and take a step to correct your mistakes, you are growing. If you're willing to oversee the others' fault, you've truly matured. If you have earned well-wishers along the way who are genuinely happy to see you grow, you've succeeded, but if you've also managed to keep and value the ones who were once a part of your journey, you've then truly succeeded.
