Things I Love About Being 35
10 years ago — WOW, a decade ago, I gave so much shit about turning 25.
25 yr old me did not give a shit about future image hosting (I’ve stopped paying for Photobucket since moving to Squarespace and I’m too tired to look for my hard drive of 25 year old photos. What I clearly remember being great at though was taking in copious amounts of alcohol, dancing barefoot into the morning and making it home alive. How I did those {and drove!} without getting into an insane accident or such — it baffles me really. But I look back at those memories with fuzzy fondness. Those were truly great times. I’d like to say I did not waste my youth.
What is not visible in those photos though was my overthinking and to this day I still do that I wear off my melatonin. I used to overthink myself to insanity that I end up crying myself to sleep over things that may or may not have happened. I used to wonder if I did enough as a twenty five year old, or the road to being 30. The pressure was insane and I embraced it.
Don’t get me wrong — there’s still pressure. We people of the corporate life live that everyday — but every single Earthly human being lives through that since Covid happened. ANYWAY.
Add this age and the world’s crazy ways that I share some of my favorite wisdom in this seemingly “old” age but I do feel younger than ever, and like I’ve truly grown apart and away from who I used to be. I feel like this is another life.
Me as 35 year old
I have stopped giving fcks. I was warned by a friend that the 30s come with that — less fcks to give. It didn’t automatically happen to me when I hit 30 but being here in this age, and having gone through quite some challenging stuff, you truly stop overthinking things at one point. Not that you just don’t care— you just choose what to care about. And it is a most liberating feeling.
I’ve stopped caring about what people think about my life decisions. That includes the decision to be child free, un-married, among other things.
Life is short and long altogether. Life is short and who knows if we have a few years to live, right? No one knows. I personally know 2 people who passed away on the first of January and at the same time, we know of relatives who are still alive at 100. Life is a balance of YOLO and saving for that retirement plan. It’s hard but the years prepare you for it.
Some things can be accepted, some things we can fight for. It’s been an on and off thing with my diet and the good thing is, I can just try again tomorrow.
We out grow a lot of things and people in this life. Clothes, books, makeup, style and sadly, people. It’s ok to not be the same person we were 10, 5 or 2 years ago. That said…
We are in no obligation to stay the same person we were before. I know i’m not that same person I was in high school and I don’t expect anyone to be. It’s alright to change — for the best, whatever you want to be (unless you want to be someone freaky and cannibal or whatever then that’s not cool).
That said and before anyone who’s reading this think I’m now un-caring, choose who/what you care for and care the hell out of it. I used to fight just not to lose and I realize how shi*ty that was. Now I either do things well or I don’t do them at all. I take resting and doing nothing very seriously, too. I choose to care immensely for my family, for a job I chose, for a business I chose to start. Everything else —- can take a number.
There will be days when getting up is hard — habit and discipline will get you through. But rest — dont give up. Know when to cut losses though.
Don’t let society dictate who / what / where you should be.
Loving yourself is about deciding what is best for you. It’s not just self care and massage s.
🤍