“When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in. That’s what this storm’s all about.”

This quote by Murakami is something I have lived by since the time I read it. I realised how all the storms that I had faced in my life helped shape who I was as a person. They helped me grow. The setbacks and challenges I have faced have been around losing a close person, not being successful in what I have wanted to do, not being able to take decisions when needed and regretting them later and even failing my own expectations. I felt challenged even when I had to do something I had not done before like public speaking. In fact, even the smallest of things like having to interact with a new bunch of people or trying something new would terrify me.

However, every time I faced a challenge, I was aware that it was not the end of the whole and how I was much more than what I was facing. They helped me become what I am today. I realise now how each of them broke my fears one by one. I am no more afraid to speak in public, meet new people or explore something new because I realise by not doing those I will be missing out on so much. Each of them have brought me a step closer to where I am and who I am. The key, I learnt, is in realising how important it is to stay positive. In fact, the challenge I face now is of missing out and not exploring myself. I believe every time you do something out of the way, you break a wall that stopped you.

Being far away from home for the first time, I see the implications of having all these experiences now. This, is for now, my biggest challenge, to survive here alone and how I come out of this will pave my way ahead.

#NMIMSMumbai
#ABGLPWooMeSeason2