Aches of Growth

 

2025!

I grew

Part One: The Year's Tender Awakening

Last year, in those quiet moments of collective hope, my friends gathered their prayers like fragile petals, imploring the heavens to gently remove me from God's roster of the strongest soldiers. 

The past years had been shadowed by loss; friends slipping away to the cold, unyielding hands of life, leaving echoes that lingered too long. 

This year, their deepest wish was simple: happiness for me. And for most of its winding path, I embraced it fully, letting joy wrap around me like a soft, unexpected blanket.

The dawn of 2025 unfolded with such promise and vibrancy. I transformed my home, brushing fresh paint across walls that now breathed with new life and color. Then came that monumental seven-figure deal, a triumph that felt like the universe's own handshake, solid and reassuring. 

My partner and I moved in effortless harmony, our rhythms perfectly aligned, as if we were dancing to the same hidden melody. 

Life, in those early days, felt abundant and kind, a gentle current carrying me forward without resistance.

Part Two: Birthday's Quiet Descent into Shadows

As my birthday arrived, like a soft chime in the distance, something shifted. My mind began to unravel- not in a sudden storm, but slowly, in delicate drops and scattered pieces, like rain teasing the earth before a downpour. 

It was subtle at first, a whisper of unease that grew into a murmur I couldn't quite silence.

Interlude: The Weight of Too Much

Around May, as school resumed in person, the full tide of overwhelm crashed in. 

Two demanding campuses pulled at me, my projects hummed with relentless energy, my business growled with its endless needs, and money's shadow loomed like a persistent fog. 

It was a whirlwind of commitments, each one tugging a thread from the fabric of who I was.

I didn't even see my own fading light until the physical signs emerged, acts so out of character they painted my days in bold, erratic strokes. 

By June, that insanity had rooted itself decently deep, a wild companion I hadn't invited. Everyone around me began to notice the change, the subtle cracks in my usual steadiness.

My relationship bore the heaviest brunt; words failed me when I needed them said to my partner, turning connection into distance. 

I pushed friends away deliberately no regrets linger there, for some bonds were meant to dissolve, their time simply up. Even the familiar voices of family grew distant, fading into silence as I withdrew.

For the first time in my life, I stood truly alone in this vast world, no supports to lean on. That solitude forced the truth: everything had piled too high, too heavy. 

I turned back to therapy, sought solace in Jesus, and in a moment of raw honesty, admitted to every caring soul that I needed help. And in that vulnerability, I found it; piecing myself back together, spark by fragile spark.

Part Three: The Humble Dance of Repair

Repairing the relationships I had unintentionally shattered during that chaotic phase was no small feat. 

It demanded a new language: apologies spoken with genuine weight, vulnerability laid bare without armor. In those revelations, the myth of my unshakeable strength dissolved. 

People see me as unbreakable, but beneath it all, I mask layers of pain and doubt that eventually demanded their release, crashing down like a long-held wave. 

Growth wasn't optional, it threw me forward, teaching me maturity's patient lessons and accountability's steady hand, reshaping me from the inside out.

Finally: The Final Quarter's Fiery Trials

As the last quarter unfolded, new challenges tested that fragile rebirth. My business had to step beyond the comforting walls of Unilag, into uncharted territory where familiar customers vanished like mist at dawn. 

It felt like hitting reset, starting from a blank canvas once more, equal parts daunting and electric.

That first month was a stark lean time, I was poor in every sense, pockets empty and spirit dimmed. Investors remained elusive, every effort fizzling like sparks in the wind. I pushed on, trying path after path, until Chowdeck emerged as the unexpected ally. 

With less than 100k, I reignited the flame of my business, watching my soul stir awake once more. Honestly, that decision stands as the year's most vital, life-affirming spark, pulling me back into full color.

Why Unveil This Story?

I share all this not for pity, but to gently dismantle the persistent myth: "Eunice is so strong, she has everything figured out." Far from it- I'm just an ordinary person navigating the messiness of life, stretched thin like warm candy until growth's necessary aches molded me anew.

This year brought losses, not to death's quiet claim, but to patterns of bad behaviour and my deliberate choice to prioritize myself at last. 

I stopped pouring energy into empty baskets, letting go to make space for what truly nourishes.

So if we've journeyed to this year's quirky close together, if these words reach you now, know this: you hold an irreplaceable place in my heart's quiet gallery. I love you deeply, and gratitude overflows.

Thank you for being part of my 2025's intricate tapestry.

Cheers especially to my baby; 2026 is our own private adventure 😏😂