Long enough for life to surprise all of us.
Same faces.
Same names.
Very different stories.
It was impossible not to notice.
Some from the “star section,”
the ones we thought were destined for effortless success,
are still finding their footing.
Still refining direction.
Still figuring out what “success” really means.
Not behind.
Just human.
Then there were the class clowns.
Those who get attention.
Still loud.
Still clinging to their high school wins from ten years ago.
As if their lives peaked then,
and nothing bigger, nothing better, happened in the last decade.
Then came the campus celebrities.
The ones everyone noticed back then.
Some aged like fine wine.
Some... not quite.
Then the quiet ones.
The ones we barely noticed.
Now professionals.
Leaders.
Sharp.
With glow-ups no one saw coming.
And finally, those who were once bullied.
The ones who were misunderstood.
The ones judged for being different.
Now living confidently.
A transgender woman, graceful and self-assured.
Same heart.
Braver story.
A glow-up rooted in courage.
Somewhere in between all that, I realized something.
Most of us, at this stage, are quietly dealing with a quarter-life crisis.
Questioning choices.
Rechecking plans.
Wondering if we are “on track”
or just pretending to be.
And that is okay.
Because life is not a race.
Being ahead at seventeen does not mean you stay ahead.
Being invisible back then does not mean you remain invisible.
Everyone gets their own season.
Some bloom early.
Some bloom late.
Some bloom after falling apart first.
Which brings me to this:
Wherever you are in life right now, keep growing.
Your best chapter might still be ahead.
Not because you are losing.
Not because you are winning.
But because you are still evolving.
Ten years later, that feels like the real flex.