While I have not completely finished the TV series “Normal People” on HULU, it has taught me important lessons about relationships and the impacts of how your peers perceive you. 

The series follows Marianne and Connell as they go from seniors in high school to navigating college in Dublin. 

The two protagonists, throughout the series, go in and out of being in a relationship with each other, to being friends and long periods where they do not interact with one another at all. 

Being in a point of my life where I am growing up, figuring out who I want to be and moving away from home, I found that this show was extremely relatable. 

There are two main plot lines that changed the way that I viewed relationships as well as growing up. At the beginning of the show, when the protagonists are in high school, Connell refuses to tell others about his relationship with Marianne because she was an outcast within her community due to her intelligence, rich parents and abnormal personality. Her heart is broken because, while Connell told her that he was in love with her, he still flirts with other girls so his friends would not suspect his relationship with the girl that they bullied incessantly. 

As the show progresses through the years, this event is reflected through the way Marianne distrusts Connell and underscores her feelings for him. She also wishes to forget her reputation at school and overcompensates by making new friends that she does not relate with and having relationships with many men she does not like. Conversely, Connell finds that he is not as naturally popular as he was in high school and dives deep into his academics. He continues to struggle with articulating his feelings, which leads to a never ending cycle of hurt between the two. 

I have really enjoyed watching “Normal People” because it has shown me how much changes from high school to college and how conflict early in a relationship or friendship can change the way two people interact for years to come. It has altered the way that I view creating relationships and has made me want to be more intentional with the time I spend with others.