Joining @karenmckersie in her mission to harness the power of positivism (P.O.P.), I am now sharing another piece of my life story. I have a couple of tearful yet defining memories which taught me how to stand up, be strong, and keep seeing the light, but for now I’m choosing something lighter yet still very much positive.

In the post, I’ll be sharing about how I started becoming more open towards making friends and connection; putting it in another way, on how I became the person who I am today.

Let’s begin when I was still young

Back when I was way younger (probably about 9 years old), I remember giving up on having friends. During that time, all those that I called “best friends” ended up leaving me behind. Most of them transferred school, others went abroad. Year after year I have a new “best friend”. This is why, when I reached 4th Grade, I got tired and decided to give up on the idea.

I started to clam up. I recall just being quietly sitting on my arm chair. I didn’t have friends to talk with. I was just consistently day dreaming about fantasies and magic. My imagination was my “best friend”.

The turning point of my life

My 10th birthday was life-changing. We celebrated it as usual in our home. I blew my cake and my mom gave me a gift. I unwrapped the adorable polka dots paper and a book revealed itself. At that time, I didn’t have any idea that this book would be playing a huge role in my life, but right then I knew how my mom cared so much. I thanked her for the gift, and I started reading it. This together with my mom's love is what I think transformed me into someone better.

This is the book.

“Making Friends” by Andrew Matthews. It’s filled up with practical knowledge and life lessons -- things that I still apply even up to this point. Slowly, I learned how to understand people. It also taught me how to understand myself more. This self-discovery made me feel very comfortable with others. Afterwards, I saw myself interacting with my class mates more often. I also stopped worrying whether our friendship will last. I just enjoyed the moment. I set aside the fear. I didn’t want it to take control of my relationship with others.

Then I realized that my 10th birthday was the real year that I was “born”.

Morphing like a butterfly

The metamorphosis didn’t happen in a snap. It was gradual. It took me about 6 years to become a cocoon and eventually grow wings. That was during my senior year in high school. I still remember runningfor the Student Council – speaking in front of many students and eventually growing out of my defeat. The more I became comfortable with who I was, the more I became active in life and school events. I even became very enthusiastic about plays that I was given recognition for being a “good actor” during Prom -- such a precious moment!

It was also during my senior year that I was able to forge brotherhood/sisterhood with some of my high school friends. From time to time, we still go for some adventures including visiting a local ecopark.

Drawback but got back

College was a season for testing what I learned over the years. Insecurities started creeping back in as I faced multitude of adolescents. Zits appeared here and there. I started feeling small again. It was like I wanted to go back to my cocoon. However, just when I started feeling “defeated”, the book has found its way to me for the second time. I decided to read it once again, and deeply reflect on each chapter. All of a sudden, the things I learned started flashing back. Something inside me reminded me that I am a “complete” individual who doesn’t need anybody’s approval. With it, my face started clearing up on its own. (Stopping anxiety over the zits perhaps helped significantly).

I tried running for the batch government, yet once again I faced defeat, but it was a glorious kind of defeat. It opened a lot of doors in giving me the opportunity to lead. All of these allowed me to graduate with awards and honor. It was also during college when I started blogging. Up to this day, I am very thankful that I planted the seed really early.

Fast forward to the present

The “light” in my personality (that I was able to develop over the decade) allowed me to get along well with the people I worked with. Over the years, I was able to meet office mates who eventually turned out to be “friends for keeps”. All of us have our unique weirdness and craziness and we embraced them with so much love. We also share moments of agony, pain and sadness. We became each other’s support.

Now, upon discovery of Steemit, I learned that this is a great avenue for channeling good vibes. To be honest, I had deep doubts at first regarding the community, but it didn't take long before I started swallowing up all my early notion of Steemit. I was wrong. Steemit is indeed a fantastic community. That’s also when I decided to invite my friends here -- @polymerfive, @endamatopoiea, @justinezee, @emilevil, @xinema, @jievarela and @threeamthoughts. There are still a few others who are waiting for the confirmation of their accounts, but they'll eventually be part of this community. I’m actually very much excited for what will be in store for us here.

Also, did I mention we were all crazy and weird? Oh I think I did. This is why we came up with a group that goes by the name @trulaloo. It's where we will be pouring out our crazy ideas and humor. Through our entertainment-and-humor filled videos, we aspire to spread more good vibes in this community. It’s also one way for us to share the kind of bond we have, and the crazy-fun relationship we all share together.

With all of these things going in my life, I realized just now that if I happen to meet my younger self, I am confident that he will be happy and proud for who I am today.

Key takeaway

I realized throughout the years that even though the environment is changing, we need to be steadfast in loving ourselves. We need to accept that although we have flaws, we are unique individuals worthy to experience life’s grandeur and beauty. In this way, we can share with others the enthusiasm for life – with hopes that they will be influenced to harness the power of positivism.

Now, how about you? What is/are the defining moment/s in your life? What circumstance made you the person you are today?

---

If this post inspired you a bit, please upvote and resteem to share the good vibes. Let's all harness the power of positivism. For updates and stories about travel, food, art and etc. you may want to follow me at @anotsopopularkid. Hope to connect with you!