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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Leeds chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.
Going viral on social media after its release on Olivia Dean’s latest album ‘The Art of Loving’, ‘Baby Steps’ holds a special place in my heart.
After struggling greatly this year with my mental health and battling against the frenemy that is an eating disorder, I was told that I would most likely not be able to go to university. Silence filled the room and my eyes began to tear up. My dream, for as long as I could remember, appeared to be crumbling before me in that very moment. An aspiration that seemed so concrete after endless open days and trips up and down the country to find the perfect university, which was Leeds from the moment I saw it, quaked and no longer appeared to be my plan that had been set in stone for so long.
I was then faced with this huge new fear that was not even something I had ever considered before. University was, in my head, my only option. How would I change all my plans when I had already firmed my place? What would I even do because all my friends are still leaving? My therapist saw my panic, my shock, my sadness, and anger and bestowed upon me two wise words in the suggestion of a solution: “baby steps”.
Even a crawl felt incomprehensible in this moment, but I trusted her. Each day, a baby step would get me closer and closer to reaching my dream no matter how many falls, tears, and doubts came along the way with those small steps.
On the 26th September, the release date of my favourite artist’s latest album, I heard the song for the first time, sat in my University of Leeds hall of residence. Immediate replay.
A song centred around independence, hard work, self-love, and the eventual beautiful fruit of one’s courage, this song epitomises the experiences of all those who have struggled and had to rebuild themselves one baby step at a time. Whether that be from a breakup, the loss of a loved one, not getting accepted for your dream job or university, this song provides an emotive and evocative response in all those seeking to better themselves.
The first verse concludes with the line, “It’s not the end, it’s the making of” and to me that provides the sense of hope so clearly evident in all of Dean’s songs, and serves as a blanket for all those in the midst of adversity in whatever subjective sense that may be; giving us all a reminder that it truly is the baby steps, and the journey, rather than the end point, that is most poignant.
To conclude, my parting message is a set of simple instructions:
Stream ‘Baby Steps’ (and the whole album). Embrace the love ‘laced in every song’. And buy yourself a treat whilst you’re at it, because the baby steps really are the hardest part (accidental reference – iykyk), and are worth every ounce of pride for taking.
Editor: Macy Hughes
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English (US) ·