It seems like just yesterday I was playing with barbies, singing along to the backstreet boys, watching cartoon-network and talking almost everyday on the phone with who used to be one of my best friends. I would wear whatever and not feel out of place, would only have to worry about getting good grades and keeping my friends. It's funny to look back because I wonder where the time went. I laugh at the good times, cry at the mistakes, wish some things could have been different, and wish I could go back to being a kid. Life seemed simple and it seemed like the world was fine, but as I grew older I realized how many obstacles I'd have to face. It's sad when a kid's innocence and spark leaves once he/she grows older. How the sun is replaced by grey clouds and life feels like jail. Now it's like it's all getting harder. Study, work, rise above the influence, peer pressure, relationships, it's a war. The true test is during the teenage years and adult years where life is just beginning. So much more to explore yet so much more to fear. The unknown is scary, where scary no longer means being afraid of the dark. And it makes me wonder, what will happen next? What does the pending chapter in my life have that I don't know just yet? Growing up is daunting and every minute it just gets even more real. That's what leaves us suffocating, that's what causes me to tremble, because the more reality overcomes dreams, the harder it gets to step into the battle zone.