My birthday was on April 28th so I have been 26 for almost two months now. It feels weird to think that I am only 4 years away from being 30. Then next year I will be considered to be in my late 20's. I know this is still considered to be very young but it still feels weird. This also means I have been out of high school for 7 years now. Sometimes it feels like yesterday was my 16th birthday and I was getting ready to go into my Sophomore year. Now I am a grown ass adult just trying to figure things out. I'm still slowly but surely progressing through college, and I still want to go into Special Education. It all feels really hard at times and I start to panic just a little bit. There is this underlying pressure that if you haven't graduated from college by the age of 25 you're clearly a failure. I know that is a false narrative, but I can't help but feel that way when people react to me still being in school. I wish this could be normalized into Utah Culture. College is not a race. You don't have to be done in 4 years. Sometimes life just happens and unknown obstacles get in the way. I have learned to have more grace for myself over the last 3 years. It isn't always easy to not feel like a failure. Everyone is different, and we all get things done and accomplished at our own pace. I am doing my absolute best with what I have and that is all that truly matters. If people are going to judge then that is a reflection of their own insecurities and they need to re-evaluate how to treat humans. Success looks different for everyone. Right now I see success in having a stable job, having good friends, and having the best relationship with myself. I'll take that as a huge win for now and continue to make progress with my long term and short term goals.
