Prologue
This is not a book for those who have always been strong.
This book is for those who have felt tired, lost, or quietly broken while trying to grow into who they were supposed to become.
If you are reading this with a heavy heart, may you find comfort in these pages. And if you are reading this with a gentle smile, may you learn to be kinder to yourself.
Chapter 1 — The Adult Version of Us
When we were younger, the world felt simple.
We believed adults always knew what they were doing. They looked calm, confident, as if they carried answers in their pockets and fear had no place in their lives.
Back then, adulthood felt like a final destination. A place where confusion would end, where life would finally make sense. We imagined stability, genuine smiles, and hearts that no longer broke so easily.
But when we finally arrived, reality looked nothing like the picture we once painted.
Being an adult is not about knowing everything. It is about learning how to walk while doubting every step.
We move forward with questions that never seem to find answers. We make decisions hoping they are right, and when they are not, we quietly pray they can still be fixed.
Behind crowded schedules and growing responsibilities, we learn a painful truth: no one is ever truly ready to become an adult.
We are all just trying.
Trying to look strong because the world is rarely gentle with those who show their cracks. Trying to endure because too many people depend on us. Trying to smile because explaining our pain feels more exhausting than hiding it.
And somewhere along the way, in all that trying, we begin to lose something that once felt so close—ourselves.
We forget how it feels to do things without a purpose. We forget how it feels to be happy without needing a reason. We silence our own voice because we have spent too long listening to expectations.
The adult version of us is not a failed version. It is simply a version that has been fighting alone for far too long.