It’s Never Too Late to Change

It feels like I’ve heard it a million times… “That’s just how I was raised,” or “It’s too late for me to do that,” or “I’m too old to change now.”

But here’s the truth I want to scream from the freaking rooftops: It’s never too late. Never too late to grow, to change your habits, your mind, your job, your beliefs, your entire life. If you’re still breathing, there’s still room for a new beginning.

I want to tell you about my dad (if you’ve been following along, you might remember we talked a little about him back in February).

When I first started diving into healing and self-growth, it felt like uncharted territory. Messy. Vulnerable. Freeing. And somewhere along the way, my dad and I started having these little impromptu “therapy sessions,” just conversations, really, where he felt safe enough to open up.

One day I asked him something that had been sitting in the back of my mind: “Do you want to change? Be happier?”

He looked at me and said, “I’m 62. I can’t change now.”

And my heart broke a little. Because I knew he believed that. And I also knew it wasn’t true.

I love my dad. And I wanted him to see that transformation isn’t reserved for the young or the ones with perfect childhoods or the people who “have it all together.” It’s for anyone who’s willing to stay open.

Since then, he’s taken real, meaningful steps. He’s become more present as a dad and a grandpa. He’s been more aware of his emotions. He’s changed his diet and seen those changes reflected in his health. He’s still learning that he’s deserving of happiness — that’s a hard one, but we’re getting there.

But it wasn’t all easy. When I started my blog and began writing about my childhood, about feeling unseen, isolated, and quieted, it hit him hard. He felt like maybe he had failed. Like I was saying he was never a good dad. And when I started suggesting that he could still change, still grow, still become more emotionally present, I think what he sometimes heard was: “You were never enough.”

But that’s not what growth means. That’s not what I meant.

Wanting better doesn’t mean what you are now, or what you were, isn’t good. You can be worthy and still want more. You can be loved and still heal old wounds. You can be a good parent and still learn to be a better one. We’re all allowed that.

And you are always deserving of love, in whatever version of yourself you’re in.

His journey has become a reminder to me that age doesn’t harden us; your mindset does. The biggest obstacle to growth isn’t time. It’s the belief that we’ve already got it all figured out (or that we’ll never figure it out). That the book of who we are is closed, the ink is dry, and the story is over. But, and I mean this in the least cliche way possible, what if the best chapter hasn’t even been written yet?

What if you’re not stuck, but you’ve just been standing still because you forgot you had permission to move?

Change doesn’t always look like some huge, dramatic leap. It can be:

• Finally going back to school in your 30s, 40s, 50s.
• Leaving a career that drains you and exploring one that lights you up.
• Learning to parent differently than how you were raised.
• Unfollowing toxic voices online and curating your feed with intention.
• Letting go of a belief that no longer serves you, even if you’ve held onto it for decades.

Every version of you has been necessary to get to this point. But you (yes, YOU) are not finished.

The truth is, the moment we think we “already know” how life works, how people are, how we are, we stop searching. We stop asking better questions. We close the door to possibility. And sometimes, we confuse that certainty with wisdom. But real wisdom leaves the door cracked open. It says, “I might be wrong.”

So if you’ve been telling yourself it’s too late, too late to be happy, too late to try, too late to change, I hope my dad’s story gives you hope.

And if no one’s told you this yet today:
You are still allowed to grow.
You are still allowed to want more.
You are still allowed to change.

Even now.
Especially now.

With love & light,
Jessica ♡