The Sacrifice I Need to Make.
Honestly, in life, there are certain things we just have to let go of in order to move forward. It’s not always easy, but if we keep dragging everything along — especially the things that weigh us down emotionally — we’ll only slow ourselves down. For me, the one thing I know I need to sacrifice right now is my past. Not just the memories, but the emotional hold they have over me.
I’ve realized that I tend to dwell too much on previous experiences, and as much as I try to act like I’ve moved on, they still find a way to creep into my mind and affect how I live in the present. One area where I see this clearly is in my relationships with people. There are times I could be with someone who genuinely likes me, but then out of nowhere, a memory of rejection or how I was once treated badly flashes in my mind, and I just find myself pulling back. I withdraw emotionally, I stop opening up, and before I know it, I’m creating distance — not because the person did anything wrong, but because I’m still holding on to a wound from the past.
It’s the same thing with school. I remember when I did my I.T. (Industrial Training) for six months. The first three months were at an institute, and the remaining three were done back at school. We had to defend both separately. After the first one, I was seriously criticized. I still remember how some of the lecturers were laughing at my presentation. I honestly felt so small that day, like all the confidence I had just vanished. That experience stuck with me. So when it was time to defend the second I.T. — months later — I was already defeated in my mind before I even stood up to speak.
Even though I had done the work and prepared my presentation, I doubted myself so much that I couldn’t express what I knew. I let fear take over. And just like the first time, I got criticized again — this time not because my content was bad, but because I didn’t speak confidently. I know deep down that day affected my total score, and all of it stemmed from what happened in the past.
I’m the type of person who doesn’t forget things easily. I carry memories around like a backpack full of stones, and the truth is, it becomes too heavy. Sometimes I want to do something new, take a bold step, speak up, or love someone freely — but then, all the memories come rushing back, and then i overthink. I withdraw and sabotage my own progress.
So if there’s one thing I seriously need to sacrifice to move forward, it’s that habit of holding on to painful past experiences. I need to stop letting old failures define my current decisions. The past happened, yes. I can’t erase it. But then I can stop allowing it to have so much power over my future..
Thanks for reading.