Who you have become will be tested…

How many times have you caught yourself saying, “If they only knew me back then…”

Sometimes we say it with a smile.

Because you know how far you’ve come. You’ve been doing the work…

Growing,

Healing,

Evolving.

You’ve had to let go of old habits, old wounds, and maybe even old versions of yourself,

that once felt like home.

It’s not always been easy, but it’s been real. And it’s been worth it.

But here’s the bit no one really warns you about:

Your growth will be tested.

Life has a strange way of circling back.

You’ll come across people, situations, or even memories that reach for the parts of you you thought were long gone.

Sometimes, it’s someone from your past.

Other times, it’s someone new.

But they push the exact buttons you’ve spent years rewiring.

And in those moments, the progress you’ve made can feel fragile.

You might feel the pull to slip back into old reactions,

Old defence mechanisms,

Old ways of being.

That old self, the one you’ve worked so hard to outgrow…

Might start knocking,

Asking to be let back in.

Don’t open the door.

Some people, whether intentionally or not, will try to provoke the version of you that no longer fits.

They’ll bait you with disrespect, try to engage you in arguments, or poke at insecurities you’ve already outgrown.

Not because you deserve it, but because they haven’t done the work themselves.

They’re not really seeing you, they’re reacting through their own wounds, their own filters.

And just because someone else is messy or undignified, doesn’t mean you need to meet them at that level.

You’ve come too far to give away your peace like that.

We can meet people where they are, without becoming how they are. That’s the difference.

Now, I’m not saying be soft. I’m certainly not saying become a doormat. Because real growth isn’t about being passive, it’s about being powerful in a different way.

I’ve realised I’m a fighter… But I fight for myself now, not against everyone else. I fight to protect this version of me—the one I’ve been becoming,

Still becoming.

The one that’s calmer,

Clearer,

More rooted.

Don’t lose yourself trying to prove who you are to people who don’t care about you, the present you.

Don’t abandon years of development just to win a pointless argument or defend yourself in front of someone who’s only trying to bring you down,

Someone who is stuck in the past,

Hasn’t yet done the work.

Because here’s the truth: most people can be brand new when life is easy.

But real transformation, healing, growth… That shows up under pressure.

So when the heat rises, when someone tries to drag you backwards, when your growth is on trial… the real question is this:

Which version of you will take the spotlight?