Never Grow Up

Two days ago, Taylor Swift's new album, Speak Now, came out. All of the songs are AMAZING. (Go buy it now. Or at least listen to it on YouTube.)

But one song in particular really hit me. It's called Never Grow Up. Here's the link.

This song is basically about growing up, and how painful it can be. Every little girl wants to grow up as fast as she can. But sometimes being grown up isn't all it's cracked up to be. Being grown up means that life's way more complicated. It means that you're going to get hurt. It means that you can never go back to your childhood.

Part of the song goes like this:

"Take pictures in your mind of your childhood room,

Memorize what it sounded like when your dad gets home,

Remember the footsteps, remember the words said,

And all your little brother's favorite songs.

I just realized everything I have is someday gonna be gone.

So here I am in my new apartment,

In a big city, they just dropped me off.

It's so much colder than I thought it would be,

So I tuck myself in and turn my night light on.

Wish I'd never grown up,

I wish I'd never grown up."

This part hit me really hard, especially since I'll be leaving for college in just a couple years. I've always had this thing about growing up. I'm excited about it, sure. But...I'm also sad. I don't want to have leave behind everything I have now. "I just realized everything I have is someday gonna be gone."

I've had to realize that growing up is ok. That it's natural, and everyone grows up eventually. That even if I can't be a teenager again and have a 4 year old little sister, or a 13 year old brother, or an 8 year old brother, I'll get to have a 25 year old brother and a 16 year old sister someday. That....maybe growing up, even if it's sad, isn't the end of the world. I have so much more to look forward to in life, it'd be sad if I missed out on them because I wanted to stay like this forever.

Growing up is something I can't change. So I can either sit back, be sad, and regret what I've lost; or, I can make the most of what I have, and look forward to what's still to come.

"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'" ~ Jeremiah 29:11