Silver and Gold

Laying in bed, listening to the sounds of sleep from all of those around me, many things become apparent. First is the reminder that my thirties are going to be interesting, and I don't think I would change that. You grow as you age (or at least you are supposed to), and hopefully you learn to better navigate the bumps in the road. Most inherently is the idea that I am definitely far behind the majority of my peers with having started a family, and I am completely okay with that. I have grown immensely in my previous years and feel that it better suits me to make decisions. The idea of starting a family changes everything; there is often a lack of ability to do things and your "center of gravity" changes. I feel that waiting is a better option, assuming you understand and are willing to accept the risks. As a whole, we are living longer and that means it is time to start carefully balancing the biological clock in order to truly fulfill such a long life.

Second is reminding yourself of the things that bring you joy; my dogs dozing, baking, my husband shifting in bed, the cats running around like they have lost their minds, being outside, loving what I do for a living, great friends, good wine, and fulfilling things that I have worked for. We often lose sight of the things that bring us joy and settle for the things that are taking center stage at a particular moment in our lives. Be aware of when that is happening and try to reshift your focus! We have a limited time here and need to remember that in order to create a better balance of positive and negatives in our lives.

Finally is the idea that you have to live life as it suits you. Society, overall, has a very specific set of standards that you are expected to meet: grow up, go to college, move out, have a successful career, get married, have children, etc... These parameters are based on an outdated system. You have to live life for you and as it makes sense for you. Not everyone is cut out for college, and that's okay. Not everyone will have children, and that's okay. Not everyone will look like a Victoria Secrets/Calvin Klein model, and that's okay. We, as a society, need to stop living completely through norms set through the mid 1900's and realize that it's time to blend the old with the new. I believe wholeheartedly in many of the standards of that time period; a few of them - family dinners, having what you need and not what you want, children having a childhood, "clean foods", and everyone having a sense of care and responsibility for one another. However, we need to look carefully at what and when we expect those things to happen especially in the age we have entered. Without a careful balance of the traditional and the modern, the results are ugly.