Happy October 20th

It’s October 20th and you know what that means…

No you don’t (and that’s totally okay).

It means I have one more month in my twenties which is somehow both wildly insignificant and terribly important to me.

I have friends who are older than me who’ve told me for years now that your thirties are some of the best years of your life – that you’re more confident, more assured, and just generally more aware of who you are and what you value.

I have friends older than that who tell me the 40s are even better.

I’m thrilled.

I’m not scared or sad like I thought I might be. I’ve always enjoyed birthdays and never minded getting older too much, but for a long time I felt like I was really a 17 year old trying to pretend like an adult.

Right on time, as if this is how aging is supposed to work, I actually feel like a grown-up now. I feel ready. I’m excited for what’s to come.

I did a thing four years ago, after being encouraged by friends, where I made a promise to write and post something every single day in the month leading up to my birthday. It wasn’t about making myself write – I already do that every day. It was about being willing to put it out there.

I did it and it led to a lot of great things. Publishing daily on this website played a role in the job I have today, which is huge. It also caught the eye of the man I’m now married to, which is MUCH BIGGER.

Writing, for better or worse, has changed my life over the past four years (largely for better). In fact, it’s changed my life all the way through since I opened my first bright pink diary with Minnie Mouse in a ballet costume on the front and little purple bows printed on the corner of each page inside.

So, I’m doing it again. Bear with me. I write far more for work now than I used to, so I’m going to need to dig deep for creativity at the end of long workdays, but I’m going to do it.

To celebrate the non-accomplishment of just still being here, I’m going to do it.

These three decades have been pretty darn good to me and if my friends are to be trusted, there’s something even better ahead.