Dear Dreamer,

At one time, you probably didn’t know what you were passionate about. You probably struggled for a long time trying to figure out the things that make you excited to wake up in the morning, nonetheless the things you wanted to invest yourself in so that you could see yourself pursuing it in the future.

You might’ve coincidentally stumbled upon an opportunity and taken it just to get the experience. But instead, you unknowingly unlocked a passion that you would carry with you for the rest of your life. In addition, you might’ve had to break barriers and shatter your comfort zone to find these things.

Or, if you were lucky, you’ve known what these things were for a while now. You’ve grown up knowing what motivates and inspires you. You might’ve discovered it early in life and have been pursuing it for a while now.

If you’re like me, you would probably admit that you’ve always been a little jealous of the people who knew who they were from a young age—the ones who didn’t hesitate in getting involved with whatever interested them, the ones who inspired others because they were confident in their own being.

It took me a little longer to find myself than I ever expected, because looking back on it, I thought I knew who I was freshmen/sophomore year of college. But guess what? I didn’t.

In fact, I’m still getting to know the person I’ve become. And you know what? That’s okay. Because frankly, it takes a while to get to know someone, even yourself.

Taking that time for myself the past two years has been one of the greatest gifts. And you know why? Because it gave me the time and ability to discover what drives me.

For me, a lot of these passions came at me all at once. It was overwhelming and scary, but most of all, it was exhilarating.

It gave me excitement and the motivation to jump in and get involved because sharing it with others was the most amazing way to supplement these passions.

Although I am so incredibly thankful and fortunate to know these things about myself, I have come to be faced with a new challenge—which most of you are probably facing now or have faced before.

If you’ve left your heart in so many different places, how do you know which ones to return to and which ones to leave behind for the moment? How do you balance all the opportunities you want to give yourself while still maintaining a healthy lifestyle? How do you stay active in one/a couple passions without feeling sad/guilty for leaving the others behind?

This is the stage of life I’m in. I know it’s time to move forward with pursuing the bigger picture, but, at times, I struggle with the balance of letting go/keeping active in the things that make sense because I love the person I’ve become. And I fear that the person I’ve become will disappear with the decision to put my other dreams on hold for the time being.

I believe and know deep down that these passions and the things that they have affected in my life will never disappear. And the person, I’ve become won’t either, as long as continue to remain active and involved.

If you don’t know which passion to pursue and are overwhelmed with the things that life is throwing at you, please know that you’re not the only one who might fear losing things about yourself while struggling to balance your life. This is something that I struggle with every day. You just have to make the decision to put everything you have into the next opportunity.

Kindest regards,

Your Fellow Passion Pursuer