“Even when the path is uncertain, keep walking. For every step you take brings you closer to what is yet to come.”

We’ve all had our first steps in this world, but it’s sometimes harder to find the next ones—not because we have to, but because we need to—as our life depends on every decision, every choice, every direction we take. Sometimes, we feel a moment of ease when we know that the path ahead of us will lead to something we want to achieve.

When you’ve wanted to reach the dream that lifts up the fiery passion within you, it leads you to become who you are today. When you’ve taken the path to excellence, it leads you to earn the medals and the degrees that you’re holding now within your hand—the very things that you’ve been wanting to reach are finally here.

But what now? What will come next after you’ve finally taken your last march towards the stage and the final steps towards the exit of this university?

You look back to your own freshmen years—it was only like yesterday when you made your first entrance to the university and realized how different and innocent you looked back then, wondering what was in store for you in your college journey. You felt the overwhelming feeling inside of you that you can’t simply wash away. How will it turn out? Who will you be friends with? What kind of professors will you be meeting every semester?

And now, you’re finally wearing the cap and gown you’ve been dreaming about every night and day, celebrating with the people who witnessed and accompanied you throughout the toughest journey you’ve had—your professors and your beloved parents, who continuously pushed you into doing your best every day in moments when you doubted yourself.

But let’s not forget the most important part—who you should really celebrate: you.

Whatever comes next for your journey, let it not be the reason to forget the person you became, the personal growth you had, the knowledge you have discovered, and the mistakes that turned into major life lessons that you’ll carry for the proceeding years of your journey. Because the one who actually carried you throughout the journey was you, and you alone. When you had the choice to go, you chose to stay.

The steps you’ve taken in this journey weren’t easy ones to take, and there was even a point in your journey where you were lost in your own path. But you took the risk to go down every path you’ve chosen, and even if you could’ve chosen another, the universe will always have its way of making things work, no matter what.

The path you have taken has led you to see more than just a clean slate. It had hills you had to slowly climb up, mountains you had to overcome and move, oceans you needed to swim across, storms you had to endure—you fought with even the tiniest grit inside of you. No one could have ever done it like how you did. You survived those trials, and sometimes there were moments where you had to pick yourself up with even the heaviest of hearts and tears.

So, whenever you don’t know the next step you should take, remember the amount of times you didn’t know what to do but took the risk to go down the path anyway, and the moments where you had to take the leap of faith over and over again. And most importantly, never forget how far you’ve come—from the person you were back then and the distance you’ve conquered. You’ve worked hard to survive this far, and the challenges you’ve faced were one of the factors that led you to prepare for what will come next for you.

But even if you feel like it won’t be enough, or that there will be challenges that you aren’t physically and mentally ready for, always remind yourself to take slow steps and grow from the experience. Life is not a race, after all.

The uncertainty of the future is not something we should see as a warning, something that would make us feel more afraid, but a reminder of endless possibilities—that you are free to become who you want to be and to do whatever it takes to survive another set of challenges ahead.

Whatever comes next for you, just believe in the next step and embrace the fears of tomorrow.

To Batch Luminara, carry within yourself the courage to move forward. The degree that you are now holding is the only evidence you need to see—that you are always made to succeed and shine in your own way.

Article by Princess Anne Adona