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If you can make it past the initial shock of the moment when you realize that for some, being a 30-something is a glamourous and adventurous time of dressing well, hosting dinner parties, running marathons and cliff diving, while for others, it means crusin’ around in a minivan wearing orthopedic shoes while cds and cheerios slide all over the place every time you make a right turn and holler at your kids to pipe down…….
And yet, you can understand that you too have been living an amazing, unexpectedly beautiful adventure…..(truly!) then you are well on your way to admitting to yourself that you are happily a grown up.
As I approach another birthday, here are some of my own reasons to celebrate another year of this beautiful gift of life……
1) I can finally dance the way I have always danced, without worrying whether or not it’s cool. Except for the fact that nineties music is starting to come back again, in which case there’s a weird chance I might pass for cool. But not likely, because I still snap ( a lot).
2) I’m better about letting things go. Whether it’s obsessing about what people might think about XYZ, or the fact that my children forget to comb their hair before school, or something someone said that got under my skin. Life is too short to sweat that small stuff.
3) I can laugh at myself more. For those who know me and thought that wasn’t possible, well, it is. I’m always looking for an excuse to laugh. I have had many accomplices throughout the years, you know who you are. 🙂
4) I can do my Buccee the chipmunk impersonation in public and know that at the end of the day……somehow, I’ll still have friends.
5) I can speak my mind with far more confidence, and don’t need to pretend I am not intelligent. While I would never be so bold as to assume to have omniscience, I own the moments which have lead up to who I am today, and wouldn’t trade the rough ones for nothin’.
6) I can be an old soul. I can watch Downtown Abbey with my brownie in a mug while wearing my Christmas jammies and know in my heart, with complete certainty, that there is nowhere else in the world I’d rather be. And still be in bed by 11pm.
7) Orthopedic shoes are surprisingly cute nowadays!
8) I love myself more. As I settle more into who God made me to be, letting go of fears and worries, I want to celebrate myself in all my me-ness. It’s okay to be a beautiful (or ugly) mess, because it helps me remember on Whom I depend.
9) My husband becomes more handsome and sweet with each year. How does he do that???!!!
10) I am more grateful. After experiencing some of my own unforeseen challenges, I can be more patient with myself and others, and I can appreciate the gift of life so much more in everyone around me. Life becomes more precious, every life. On a difficult day, I can remind myself of all the challenges I am NOT facing, and be truly thankful for even my difficulties. Sounds so strange. But it becomes more true every day that having perspective is everything.
Maybe growing up isn’t so bad after all.
