Growth. It’s something so unnoticeable, yet so noticeable all at the same time.

The lawn of the place that I rent grows. I barely notice it. Then one day, I go to hang out my washing and realise I have to hack my way through the jungle in order the reach the clothesline.

Growth. So unnoticeable. So noticeable.

The same has happened in my life, and perhaps it has happened in yours.

This morning, I lay in bed resting after 10 weeks of adjusting to joining the workforce as a teacher. I have spent 10 weeks stumbling through adult responsibilities such as renting my first house, choosing my own electricity and internet providers and buying a vacuum cleaner.

Not only have I had to perform those adult responsibilities that keep a roof over my head with the expected first world conveniences, I have also had to learn what it means to be a professional, how to maintain professional relationships, and how to act like I’ll know how to use the first aid kit I take to the students’ gymnastics sessions, should a student be injured (and yes, I’ve done first aid).

This morning my hacking-through-the-jungle moment came as I lay lazily in bed on the morning of my departure to the Gold Coast for a holiday. After browsing through Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and my emails until there was no more to see, I decided to use my time a little more productively. I looked up the number of a taxi company and called to book a taxi to take me to the airport. After I hung up, I realised that I had never called for a taxi before this moment, and I began to see the last seven years of my life (those spent as a senior student at high school and those spent as a university student) as a number of experiences that had gradually built upon each other to bring me to the point I am today.

Seven years ago the thought of calling a taxi company and getting into a taxi by myself would have been horrifying, but then again, so was the thought of getting a job, or catching public transport by myself, or calling an internet provider to learn about the different internet plans available to me, or simply walking into a store and saying to a complete stranger, “I’m here to buy a vacuum cleaner.”

Growth. So unnoticeable. So noticeable.