“The more things change, the more they stay the same.”
I used to hate these words.
Capital-H hate.
I think I hated them because I was always striving to change something about myself. I saw myself as a list of things to fix.
That list kept growing and changing with me through every phase of my life. Every time I turned a page, I burned the chapter behind me. I wanted a new version of me. A fresh start. I wanted to rip the list apart.
But somehow… my mind, wired for self-criticism, kept writing new lists.
Over and over again.
A few days ago, I watched the Hannah Montana 20th anniversary interview. That show was a big part of my life growing up.
Seeing Miley grow and change made me nostalgic for my younger self.
I looked back at my old bucket lists. My old hobbies. My old interests. Even my old flaws and quirks.
And I realized…
I no longer want to burn the chapters.
Maybe it’s growing up. Maybe it’s therapy. Maybe it’s all the inner work over the years.
But I don’t have a list anymore.
Not for who I am now. Not for who I used to be.
Twenty years ago, when Hannah Montana was my favorite show, there was a song I used to go back to whenever I felt sad. I still do.
Every Part of Me.
There’s one line that always stayed with me: “Can I find a way to be every part of me?”
I tried so hard to get there.
Different tools. Different ideas. Different versions of “fixing” myself.
But nothing worked.
Nothing… except love.
Love for myself. Love for God. Love for the world. Love for others.
That’s what finally made space for all the versions of me to exist… without shame.
You might not relate to this today, and that’s okay.
But I think this is the heart of my #YearOfLove.
When you truly love, you stop making lists.
You still grow. You still care. But you don’t use your flaws as reasons to hate or abandon yourself.
Think about that for a moment today…
How do you feel about the younger versions of you?
Proud?
Embarrassed?
Ashamed?
Nostalgic?
Worth the thought!
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