Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong

The past few months of my life have been extremely challenging and yet I believe that it’s crucial to the plot- allow me to overshare

This is not a story about optimism but one about persistence. It has taken me a while to come to terms with my weaknesses but through these testing times I believe that I have learned lessons for a lifetime.

When I moved out of my parents home and my home country a year ago I was conscious of the challenges I was signing up for, however nothing could’ve prepared me for the experiences I had over the course of this last year.

My biggest challenge came when I was laid off from my job. I was absolutely unprepared for the job market and had nothing to go on from. Finances became a central issue and I realized that I wasn’t very careful about things when circumstances were better (classic the ant and the cricket, except I was clearly the cricket). I had recently moved to a new house and was paying a higher rent. The new location was also hard to adjust to since I had to find my way around a new city and I had practically nothing to guide me through it.

In the midst of these hardships, I often found myself plagued by loneliness and overwhelmed by uncertainty. The transition took a toll on my physical health, exacerbating my struggle with PCOS and making even simple daily tasks feel insurmountable. It was during my lowest moments that I came to recognize a profound truth: sometimes, it is when everything falls apart that the pieces begin to fall into place. I learnt independence, self reliance and different ways to keep myself going. I found the time to connect with myself, see things with a fresh perspective, unwind and restart. As horrible as things were, I consistently felt like the main character.

Optimism, though an important theme in times like these, cannot carry us alone. It is our persistence that keeps us afloat. Each day may seem indistinguishable from the last, but it is within our power to make small changes that yield profound differences. The compound effect of our choices.

As an overachieving young adult, and the eldest child of a brown family, I was accustomed to scoring the best marks in school and succeeding in all endeavors I undertook. Not being able to perform, or achieve for once in my life was very humbling and overwhelming. It gave me a chance to come to terms with my flaws and accept the things that I could not control.

Things are still hard, I’m still looking for a job and finances are still an issue, however, I have found the key to keep myself motivated. I have started working out and paying more attention to my health. The new place I moved to has allowed me to meet some amazing people and build some life-changing connections. I have learnt to cook for myself and I have started enjoying my own company more. Even if things are not how I want them to be, I firmly believe that they are exactly the way they have to be for the plot.

This is a special PSA for all the twenty-somethings who might be going through a lot in their lives at the moment. Blame it all on the Mercury retrograde and believe that things are not going to remain the same. Focus on the things that you can control and let the rest follow.