Happy Birthday to Me: Reflecting on the Past

Today I turn 22 years old. To many, that’s still fairly young. I might appear old to only very young children. Personally, I think that I’m in that period that I consider as the ‘unsure’ years. Some may have established an identity at this age; I’ve seen people that I graduated high school with become mothers, fathers, successful businesspeople, get married, among many other things. Then, I notice the lack of identity in myself and feel a little jealous. Sure, I’m a college student, and that is something, but it’s also frustrating to see most of my high school classmates graduating from college this year. I certainly feel behind.

(Here comes the cheerful part)… But I’m 22 years old! And I’m not behind! Sure, I might work in retail in my spare time, but I’m going to school to make a life for myself. I’m also not worthless in heart, mind, and spirit. God is always cheering me on and I know he’s proud of my accomplishments. I’m smart, funny, (trying to be) independent, charming, among many other fun and quirky adjectives.

I have learned a lot of valuable advice over the years. Some of the advice has been fairly light-hearted, and some of it has been pretty serious. All in all, the advice has made me the girl I am today. I thought I’d share some of what I’ve learned: to give you advice in return, to make you smile, to make you relate back through your years. Enjoy!

****From my childhood:****
-Always wipe
-Imagination can get you ANYWHERE
-Always try new things
-Living life isn’t nearly as fun without a best friend
-At least one person who is important to you will move away or pass away. And somebody will offer you support when it happens.
-When an adult tells you not to do something, LISTEN TO THEM. It might seem like a good idea to do what you want, but most of the time there is truth to their warning.
-Share frequently- people appreciate it
-Don’t throw hard toys at people’s heads, no matter how annoying the neighbor boy is!

****From being a teenager:****
-Don’t be ashamed about having curly hair
-Don’t only think about yourself
-Boys aren’t everything
-Success in academics is never a bad thing!
-It’s important to put care into your appearance
-Develop great friendships with your teachers
-Don’t be ashamed about being different than others
-It’s not all about being in the popular crowd. It’s about being with the people who care about you more than life itself and are good influences
-A first kiss is a wonderful thing, but it’s also important to stay innocent and move slow

****Lessons that I’ve learned in the last few years:****
-If you feel like you need to hurt yourself, don’t! Call anybody, and if you don’t have anybody to talk to, call 911. There is always somebody who will be there to get you through the hard times.
-Drinking excessively is stupid. If you get sick and feel awful 90% of the experience, it can’t be all good.
-Accept your body the way it is, and don’t be ashamed of it. God made you to look a certain way, and he doesn’t make mistakes
-Don’t depend on your significant other. Realize that you don’t NEED them, but feel absolutely blessed to have them in your life
-Sex is worth waiting for. If you have done it, and wish to not do it until a more reasonable time, then do it! Just because you made an impulse doesn’t mean you have to keep doing it
-It’s ok to act like a kid. Don’t behave like one though
-Enjoy the little things in life
-Don’t feel pressured to do something because other people are. Things come at their own time for each individual. And sometimes they won’t come. But let things come naturally and embrace them as events happen

There are definitely more pieces of advice I could share with you, but I am trying to keep things fairly short and concise. It was actually fun to think of the times where these lessons occurred; definitely brought back a ton of fun memories. The best part is that this list will just continue to grow along with me. I’m definitely not fully mature (is anybody ever TRULY mature?) and have a lot to learn. I also hope to learn to reflect and develop lessons through my own posts. I mean, I’m actually taking the time to write out all my thoughts instead of keeping them trapped up inside my skull, so I might as well take them seriously and go into more detail. It’s really quite fun that way.

And to anybody that wishes me a happy birthday, thank you!

Fin