Over the last year or so, I’ve relished in the fact that as I get older, my youth appears stronger in every moment. My sense of wonder is unstoppable and my goal to learn something new everyday is reached. Am I immature? No. That’s the wrong descriptive word. I’m still searching for the perfect term to describe this sense of Benjamin Button. We age, that’s life. But it’s this realization of feeling young that has no number. My best friend Kat always reminds me of this. She has corrected me throughout my mid-twenties when I would complain about losing my youth with every passing year. She would always say something like, with every year older we become wiser, more knowledgeable, more confident in who we are. Aren’t you so happy with who we’ve become? What we’ve achieved? How about living the rest of this amazing life with all of these newfound qualities we garner each year…isn’t that priceless? We’ve survived the craziness of young adulthood (and a little recklessly, might I add), and now we’re strong and clear on not only who we want to be, but who we are. I feel more beautiful at 29 than ever before. I’m finally at that time in my life where I’m OK with getting older because I’ve discovered that the fountain of youth has no age. It’s not about being young or striving/dying to be young again, it’s about accepting that feeling youthful is perfectly normal, and taking advantage of that feeling is important.
Next time you’re out for coffee or taking in an afternoon beach walk, look around at the people in your view. Do you notice laughter, flirtatious gestures, immaturity, or laissez-faire? I often see no differences between a young, honeymoon stage couple and their older counterpart. Although the younger couple is more lively or bubbly, there’s this deep connection in the hands and conversations of the elderly. There is a sense of playfulness that still remains, however our innocence adapts.
Through observation of my surroundings, specifically over the past year, it’s been an epiphany for me that no matter how old we are in years, we still never lose the carefree sense of being 20 (or 10 or 11 or 18…I’m sure you get my point). I love that thought, don’t you? Tell me I’m not alone when I say I still feel young at heart, sometimes even losing all sense of reality and simply going with the flow of feeling energized with an intense self-discovery and/or newness. And the best part of it all is getting to blend that springtide feeling with the newly-aquired sensibility, humility, and confidence.
So where am I getting to with all of this? The realization that we need to take advantage of this fantastic fountain of youth we’ve all been given, especially while we are still driven, healthy, and strong. If the last 2 years have taught me anything, it’s to live in the moment and believe that you can realize your daydreams at any age, young, old, or in between. Even if a serious health condition smacks a label on you, that doesn’t mean you still can’t climb Mount Everest or take a leave of absence from your stable job and rent a bungalow on a Bali beach for a year. And maybe you’ve been dealt a terrible scenario, but if your mission is to make the leap from finance to entrepreneurship in a completely unrelated field, ask yourself: Why am I hesitating? What’s the emotional roadblock? If it’s monetary, we all can relate. If it’s stress, we all can relate. If it’s fear of failure, we all can relate. We as humans are so lucky to have this innate ability to overcome distresses or obstacles, it’s just learning how to use the tools around you for support and guidance. If you don’t try, you will never know, and luckily in the 21st century, our access to a wide variety of opportunity awaits us. It’s one thing to write down your goals, but are you crossing them off? Time is of the essence, the time is now. While you are still feeling fresh and free, while you are still discovering which career is right for you, while you are healthy, able, and open, be honest with yourself and strive for greatness. Now I’m not saying go quit your day job to pursue your wildest dreams, but I definitely am telling you to reconsider and redirect your thought process…Are you at the 9-5 job you are undeniably passionate about? Or do you think it’s time to update your resume and make the jump into a whole new career path that you spend all of your free time focusing on? Are you happy?
It’s funny isn’t it? I haven’t written anything in this post that you don’t already know, but maybe it helps to know that your struggles with independence and getting older are real and relatable to so many others. We are never alone. I always find that I have one thought and I read about it the next day in an article on Refinery 29. But what makes you different, is tapping into your true self and listening to where it’s telling you to go. And if your heart is telling you it’s time for ice cream, I think it’s safe to say that your youth is right there, knocking on your door.
