I normally try to adhere to AP style in blog posts, but breaking the rules (and spelling out a number over 10) seems fitting today… because I’m thirty. Yes, thirty. Which is crazy. It feels like it was just yesterday that I was a senior in college, about to turn 21 outside the Sea Grape! (Scroll down to see a couple of photos from age 20/21 with my best girlfriends from college.) Where did the time go?
In some ways, I feel very much like a 30-year-old today. Gone are the days in which I could stay up until 5 a.m. with my friends, and I no longer live in a 400-square-foot apartment cluttered with trinkets and painted a lovely shade of canary yellow. My tastes have changed (wine > beer, less > more, cooking > mac and cheese every night, and navy > all other colors), and I have a husband. At the same time, though, I still think of myself as a kid. I still have the same personality I had when I was younger, and I still enjoy doing a lot of the stuff I used to enjoy way back when. I still go to my parents when I’m overwhelmed, overjoyed or in need of advice, and I still don’t have everything figured out. But maybe you never really cross into “full adulthood.” Because how can you completely leave behind everything that you once were? (Well, don’t I sound like Carrie Bradshaw.)
A younger version of myself probably envisioned things being a bit different by the time the big “three-oh” rolled around. You know: a house, kids, a dog, an East Coast zip code, etc. But you know what? I’m so glad that my life turned out the way that it did, and I wouldn’t trade the decisions I made or the incredible experiences I had for anything. Will we eventually have some of the things I just mentioned? Probably! I hope so! Who knows, though. All I can say is that right now, I’m loving my current stage of life, and feel blessed, thankful and loved. I’m truly the happiest I’ve ever been (thank you, Mitch!), and for the first time, I’m not worried about what the future holds for me. Talk about refreshing.
That said, I’d be lying if I said that I’m not the teensiest bit freaked out by the number itself, even though I know it means very little. I’d also be lying if I said I’m not sad to see my 20s go, and not nostalgic for a stage that is now coming to a close. But I think these are all normal and good feelings to have. They indicate that through all the ups and downs, I really freakin’ enjoyed the last decade of my life! And that’s what life’s about, right?
My apologies for babbling on and on like this, but stay tuned for a more coherent post about what I learned from my 20s. :) And a happy 30th goes out to my soul sista, Allie, with whom I share this day. (Love you, Mouse!) And Mitch? You’re next. Enjoy your last three days of being 29! Muahaha… ;) (Love you, too.)
On to the next 10! :)
