Recently I entered the next year of my existence, what I would call, ‘The big 2 5’. A lot of people in my age group, have not been as excited on getting here as I have, and I have questioned it. Why have I been so excited? Why have I embraced the idea of aging as a goal rather than a looming hinderance? What’s so downgrading about growing up and aging?
What’s worse, growing up or aging
The reason I started this blog, is because younger me had so many hopes and dreams about growing up and adulting, that when I reached it, the illusion had smashed. Grownups make growing up look easy. The women who I looked up to when they were 25, had aged gracefully, matures and were handling life like a boss! I’ll admit the first 4 years of my 20s were the opposite of theirs, that I had 0 expectation that I would be half as graceful as them when I turned 25.
Growing up sucks! This is the process of understanding how you as an individual, have become an actual member of society, and being responsible for yourself. It’s the absolute trenches, and the majority of my memories are of the days I am fighting for my life.
Aging, however, is maturing. This comes with reflection, self-awareness and a sense of nostalgia for your own experience. It’s calming and humbling to take the time and appreciate how far I have come from the days of growing up. I am not saying I have finished growing up (because that doesn’t stop until my last breath is taken), but I do have a sense of appreciation for growing up I have done so far.
This is why I don’t mind the idea of aging. The more I age, the more I get to look back and see how far I have come. I’ll admit, I have taken 3 years to learn how to appreciate my own existence, so the reflection is natural to me. Though I do feel more grateful for where I am now, compared to the fear of never achieving at all that I felt, mere years ago.
How to be excited about Growing up and Aging
Well, this will purely depend on you but here is how I did it.
I am the kind of person who likes to celebrate and feel excited about an event or treat. It’s normal for people to not want to celebrate their birthdays as they get older, but I love the idea of birthdays. Not just my own, but also those I care about. I think it stems from my childhood, and how my family would rarely get treats unless we were celebrating something, like a birthday.
So, I turned 25 and I threw the biggest party I have ever had in my life (in the UK). I financed it and planned it, and it gave me something to look forward to. I was so excited for my birthday, that you would have thought I was turning some kind of special age, not 25. But I made 25 special, and 2 weeks on I am still riding on the high.
I live my life in any way that makes me feel happy about it. I hope to age and grow old and look back at my life, and remember all the things I did for me. Those things will make me excited for the future event and will make the memories more enjoyable.
Getting close to my birthday, I was asked a lot about why I was so excited to get older, especially by my fellow 1999s. My answer was, ‘Why can’t I be excited? I am celebrating making it to this milestone, the growing up I have had to do to get here, and reminding myself I have surpassed the 25-year-old woman, that teenage me dreamed of becoming’. You only live once, so celebrate life when you can!
How to embrace Growing up and Aging
Now, the thing that comes with adulting is the realisation that we are no longer as young. Each year something changes, sometimes in even shorter time periods. Joints become a little more stiff, the brain chemistry might alter a little, you might even feel like taking life/health a bit more seriously. Whatever that change is, you are going to have to learn to embrace it, because change is inevitable (sounding like a serious broken record now). So, how do you navigate and embrace it?
Hopefully, some people might be able to resonate with me, but I am a planner. I think/plan ahead and its normally fuelled by a sense of anxiety. I save a little extra, just in case or I have a back up plan (or 2) just in case. Having seen what train-wreck my early 20s were, I have learnt that I can’t plan for everything, but I can plan flexibility in my life to have some sense of control. This mentality let me plan my birthday, knowing that all my guests were not as organised as I was. I sent my invites 2 months in advanced, and asked for RSVP 1 month before. But I also planned for flexibility in catering, the music, the guest numbers. Since it was so flexible it didn’t throw me off, it just was what it was.
There are other people who don’t plan, so my previous example may not resonate. Obviously, I don’t have that experience, but I assume you have a sense of ‘we’ll see how it goes’, and as much as that stresses me, I can understand how planning things can be overwhelming. If that is your mindset, then I feel it might be less of a shock to embrace the changes that come with growing up and aging.
TL:DR
- I am a year older! And now that I am out of my early 20s, I have learnt to accept the inevitable changes that come with growing up and aging (which will keep coming until I take my last breathe)
- Growing up is tough – In my opinion.
- Aging is more enjoyable – Only because it’s the nostalgic path of watching how I grew up
- Being excited to age/grow up is not a negative – Be excited for whatever you want, but I do get very excited for celebrating the existence of someone and how long it has been
- Change is inevitable – We’re growing old and that’s it. Enjoy the ride where you can and embrace the journey of growing up and aging
