I Am Made of You, Too

We carry small fragments of the people we meet.

Maybe it’s a habit of theirs, the way they say certain words, without even realizing it, we carry them with us. Regardless of whether we stay in touch or part ways, a small part of them remains. Most of the time, we don’t even notice.

If I were to look closely at myself to see which parts of me carry them, it would take time. Today, I am taking that time. I am sitting down to write, to remember the people with whom I once shared a common space.

I thought of writing a 2025 recap, but I think this is a better way to remember the people who mattered, or simply those who contributed, knowingly or unknowingly, to who I am today. These memories don’t always hold warmth; some come with gut-wrenching pain that I

endured this year. And I carried those fragments too, because at the end of the day, they also made me who I am.

When I thought about writing a recap, the one thing that kept returning to me was people. The most significant thing I remember about this year is people—the new ones I met, the old ones I lost, and the constant ones who stayed.

I have always valued my true self. I have believed that life can be lived alone, that while human connection is beautiful, I am grounded enough to survive without it. This year has been eye-opening. Not because my independence turned into dependency, but because my understanding of independence changed.

Every year comes with lessons, and like the soft, reflective beings we are (sometimes), we look back and measure how we have changed, how we survived, how we grew. That feeling is constant. I remember saying, 2024 taught me so much; it changed me from within. And now, writing about 2025, I feel the same. Maybe there’s nothing wrong with that. Maybe it just reminds me how constantly things change, how emotions don’t settle, but evolve.

2024 taught me independence.
2025 taught me different aspects of it.

Thinking that independence only means thriving alone might be shallow. Maybe true independence is also knowing when you want to lean on someone. Maybe it’s knowing when you need people, not out of validation or desperation, but because we are human. We are social. We need connection.

And here’s something that surprised me: I love making connections.

For the longest time, I believed a small circle was all I needed, and that still holds true in my personal life. But beyond that, simply getting to know people, forming connections, makes me feel alive. This year was a lot about that.

Those school friends, I stayed in touch with most of them. Not through daily conversations, but by simply checking in. An acquaintance I hadn’t spoken to in years, whom I saw doing amazing work, I texted her just to tell her how incredible she is. Not out of obligation, not from pressure to maintain relationships, but from a sense of freedom. From genuinely wanting to appreciate someone.

I reached out to friends and colleagues I hadn’t been close to for a long time, and I realized something about myself: I love being that person.

My idea of being alone transformed into understanding that I need human connections, not to feel validated, but because they make me feel alive. That doesn’t mean I am not enough for myself. Those emotions are mine. The desire to make people feel heard, loved, and cared for comes from within me. The love we give others is the love we already carry inside us. Whether or not we get to express it, it will always exist. As long as I do.

2025, thank you for these people.
Thank you for making me carry small fragments of them with me. Thank you to those who made me feel loved and cared for. It wasn’t always flowers and petals, but thank you for giving me the strength to walk through thorns, too.

I don’t fully understand how luck works, but I am pretty sure I am lucky enough to have these people in my life. I am carrying these connections with me, not guaranteed that we will stay in touch, but as long as I exist, you exist within me. Maybe it’s the way you say “thank you” that I picked up. Maybe it’s a strange superstition I now believe in, one that definitely didn’t come from my culture (lmao).

As long as I am, I will carry you with me.

Thank you for making me who I am.
I am grateful.