One that you might not have heard before…
I have been sitting on the idea for this post for a few weeks now, trying to find the exact words that I need in order to really explain what I mean. I also needed to work up the courage to actually post this in the first place.
It started a few weeks ago when I decided to start eating healthier and begin an exercise routine. Something just triggered in my brain and I knew that I needed to do something to make myself feel better not only about the way that I looked but about my life in general. I don’t know if it really started with my decision to start a healthier lifestyle, in fact I am pretty sure that most of it didn’t. Rather, I think that it was building up from the beginning of the summer and this healthier lifestyle just…kicked it into high gear.
The events of this summer have made me realize a great many things. Along with this healthier lifestyle I have been, seemingly, growing up quite a bit more than before. A week from today I will be taking my final driving test, something that has been long overdue for me. I am actually quite stressed out about it as I do not like tests at all. I have practiced quite a bit though, and I guess all I can do at this point is cross my fingers and hope for the best. I am also living away from home again for the second summer in a row, although I have visited family a few times.
One of the biggest things that I have realized though, and please no one panic when I say this, is that I don’t like Harry Potter as much as I used to. Do not get me wrong, it has a special spot amongst all of the books that I read as I am pretty sure it was the series that triggered my love of reading in the first place, but I have come to realize that the first time I read the books and the years of waiting between the time I first read them in 1998 (I still maintain that I started reading the first one at 5 years old) until the end in 2007 was when they held the most magic. The spanned throughout my entire childhood, and the impact they have had won’t change, but the magic has lessened. I am not sure that they are the most amazing books I have ever read anymore. But that’s alright with me. I am a different person, I think. Not entirely different, maybe just more…mature. Not to say that others who still love the books to the same extent as I did when I was introduced aren’t, because they are.
I think that I needed this change, from the exercise that has allowed me to make quite a bit of progress in changing my body (weight included, although the actual number on the scale is not as important to me as they way I feel about my appearance), to the reduction in the amount of makeup that I wear, to moving beyond Harry Potter. I am not going to forget any “line” of the story of the person I used to be, including all of the good and bad parts, but honestly? I am much happier with the person that I am now, and who I am becoming.
I feel free; like I could conquer the world.
Remember the past and the experiences that brought you to where you are now. But, when all is said and done: here’s to the present. Here’s to the future.
Best,
Jessica
Walking The Forest Floor 