My Character Arc

The most natural change is to grow, to experience change over time at a rate that is acceptable as normal. When we're learning from school or from what we experience around us, when we interact and share experiences with other people, when we stop and look behind at what we've accomplished, we can see the changes that we've encountered and the metamorphosis we've undergone.

I know I've changed a lot over the years I've spent away from what I once called my home (because now even the definition of home has changed), and it's because there was a massive change of scenery and situation. I went to college, I took care of myself, I took risks and made promises to myself, and I grew.

Sometimes, I wonder if I grew out of proportion. I believe in having a character arc (because I'm still a writer inside, sob sob), and following the set formula for what would be termed "normal" growth. A base set of characteristics are established, and from then on, layers are built to add on to what already exists, and then those traits are expanded on with experience and knowledge. I'd like to think I've followed my character arc closely enough to not have grown into a person I wasn't supposed to.

But I am not an unbiased observer, so I won't be the best judge of things. I don't even know if it's a good or bad thing to have grown out of character, because I don't know how I deviate from my base characteristics.

Is it a good thing to have changed in a way that no one would have thought possible for your personality?