The Fear of Getting Older. - by Quareeb Jagun

They brought you into the world. You cried, people celebrated, pictures were taken. Aunties pinched your cheeks. Uncles prophesied greatness. But nobody told you that from that moment that time had already begun to slip away.You learned to walk, you fell flat on your face. Got up and trying again. Fell again. You laughed even when you were crying. Everyone clapped, like you had done something big. Life felt slow. You spent afternoons playing, chasing butterflies. No rush, no worries. Everything felt safe.Primary school came. New uniforms. New shoes. You would grow out of them fast. Your dreams felt big: “I want to be a doctor! A pilot! The president!” You believed it. You thought you had lots of time.Secondary school came next. Friends became like family. You laughed a lot in class. Small heartbreaks taught you about pain. You wrote big promises in your notebook: “I will build a house. I will travel the world.”<img alt="" src="/media/inline_insight_image/Generated_Image_March_25_2026_-_4_28PM.png" style="background-color: transparent;"/>You believed time was on your side but It all feels like yesterday now. But time was moving, quietly, patiently without asking for your permission.Adolescence hit like a storm. Your body changed, Your voice deepened. Choices multiplied; university, jobs, loves, losses. You juggled lectures, deadlines, late-night dreams. You felt like a giant stepping into your own life. Stronger. Wiser. A little tired.And then… you feel it. A quiet fear, not because of wrinkles in the mirror. Not because of grey hairs. But something deeper, that time is moving, and it is not waiting.<img alt="" src="/media/inline_insight_image/Generated_Image_March_25_2026_-_4_19PM.png"/>You start remembering more than creating. Primary school uniforms flash brighter than tomorrow’s plans. Secondary school promises echo louder than today’s goals.You begin to measure life by “what could have been.” and deep inside, a voice whispers, “Can I go back?” back to when life was simple, back to when dreams were innocent, back to when time felt endless. But you can’t.Human life was never designed to be permanent. We are just part of a moving story, an evolution of moments, choices, chances. We evolve through moments of birth, falls, first steps, first loves, first failures and death.The baby in you didn’t vanish.The teenager didn’t die. They live inside, watching every choice, asking one question:“What are you doing with the time we gave you?” So what are we really afraid of?It is not old age. It is not the calendar moving fast. It is the dreams we did not follow. It is the plans we left behind. It is the feeling that we could have done more.Sometimes, it is the thought of “what could have been” that hurts the most.We remember chances we missed. We remember the times we were afraid to try.We remember the things we started but did not finish. That is where the fear comes from.Growing old is not the problem. The real problem is knowing that time is limited.That one day, there will be no more time to try again. One day, someone will call you “old.”It will not hurt because of your age. It will hurt if you know you did not chase your dreams.At that point, your age will not matter.Your story will.So do not be afraid of growing older. Be afraid of not living fully.Start today. Take one step. Do something you have been putting off.Try again, even if you are scared.Use your time well.Because one day, your story is all that will remain <img alt="" src="/media/inline_insight_image/Generated_Image_March_25_2026_-_4_29PM.png" style="background-color: transparent;"/>Because the child, the teen, the young dreamer, they’re still here.Cheering you on. Waiting for you to make their time count.What will your story say?Your story matters. Your choices matter.So today, tell me: what dream will you chase before time runs out?Drop it in the comments, let’s hold each other accountable.

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