Turning 18
Early this year, on January 3rd, I turned 18 years old. In the month that passed since this day, and in the weeks leading up to it, I have found myself questioning, “Am I really an adult or am I still just a kid?” I really am not very sure, however I feel that this question is a necessary one to answer in order to truly know myself. I want to find out if being eighteen really means that I have to grow up. I am legally an adult to the government, but I also know that I am not an emotionally and mentally fully mature person yet. Am I immature for my age? Should I have already grown up? “What does it mean to grow up-to be an adult?”
To be a successful adult means that a person is emotionally and mentally aware of themselves, can be self-reliant, can engage in healthy relationships, and can take responsibility for the choices they make. I have realised that this is not the cool, party-ridden, enjoyable life that I thought it would be but instead, this is the time reserved to set my life. I am now legal. I have gained the glorious title of “an adult”. Along with this title has come mountains of privileges and responsibilities, however I am still learning to cope with them.
At this stage, a number of questions are running through my mind. What am I going to do with my life? What do I truly desire? Am I following the right path? Am I mature enough to handle the responsibilities that tail this change? Can I make it on my own? And the most frequent question that haunts me, do I believe that I can do it?
I have come across a few people that tell me that my desires and aspirations are unrealistic and that they won’t work. But I have come to realize that if I want it to work, it will. I understand that people mean well in telling me this, but if you believe in yourself, you should go for it! I understand that many of these people have started of exactly where I am right now, but in my eyes, many of these people are too old to know what is going on even...