The Difference a Year Can Make

Last year I was a senior in high school, giddy about the year ahead.
This year I am college freshman, dreading the classes to come. 

Last year I was starting my first job, excited to work at a movie theater. 
This year I have worked two jobs, and I'm dying to get away from the vast amount of popcorn that follows me around. 

Last year I was afraid of change, wishing things could stay the same forever. 
This year I embrace the change, I crave for a break in the monotony, and I die everyday without it.

Last year I was hopeful for a bright future.
This year I am determined to have a brilliant one. 

Last year I was a zombie enthusiast, excited at all times for a zombie apocalypse. 
This year I... well, some things don't change, I suppose.

Last year I was ignorant to the world, oblivious to anything outside of my small bubble of a life.
This year I am enthralled with the universe, in awe of everything inside of it, and wanting to touch the stars.  

Last year I was unattached to most emotions, feeling things through a filter to keep my heart from getting broken.
This year I am feeling things fully, more irritable because I care, and sensitive because I have missed out on so much by closing off my heart.

Last year I was Cupcake, a child with her head in the clouds, a girl who thought she was invincible, a teenage theatre kid who wasn't ready to grow up.
This year I am Alexis, a young adult figuring out her life, a woman that could have died in a horrendous car crash, an eighteen year old finally embracing her own mortality, and ready to face the rest of her life. 

Oh, what a difference a year can make.