I almost forgot to mention the fitting fact that National Talk Like a Pirate Day falls on my half-birthday celebration. Who am I to be so lucky…arg?!
And because I feel like I preached a little too much in the previous post, here is a funny video of Ellen talking to my granny on the phone. She claims it’s a lady in Texas, but anyone that knows my granny will understand why I believe that’s just a cover up…
Happy half-birthday to me! Today marks the day that I am officially half way through the initially horrifying 23rd year of my life. And guess what, I’m making it making the most of it. And dare I say, 23 looks good on me? Oh yea, I believe it does.
Facebook is awesome at target marketing, meaning my news feed is often full of articles like “Things I wish I Had Known in My Twenties,” “The Ultimate Bucket List for 20-Somethings,” “Letter to My 20 Year Old Self,” etc. etc. So of course I read all of them. Some of them are very inspiring and helpful, while others are a little unrealistic. How many 20-somethings do you know that can afford trips to China, Europe, the Burning Man, Thailand, etc…(to fulfill the 20-Something Bucket List, of course!) Maybe I’m a minority in this case, but I’m a poor 20-something that is paying off student debt with every paycheck, so I don’t see a trip, let alone multiple trips, out of the country happening anytime soon.
Nonetheless, soaking up all the 23-year-old targeted information has led me to be more conscientious about setting realistic goals for myself- like making health a habit after college and finding a church that fits me and budgeting myself so I can have minor splurges when “necessary.” These are things that I have probably been working on for some time, but they seem to move higher up the priority list every day. It’s funny how much the relationship with yourself grows after college. I have become my own personal mentor and counselor after leaving my professors and sorority sisters behind. But thanks to the help of Alex and a few phone calls home, I think I’m making it pretty darn well.
Thus far into 23, I have learned to cook, I find myself being a mindful shopper by checking the labels, I’ve purchased five books with intent to read them all and have finished one of them (possibly two by the end of today- (this is impressive for me)), I treat myself to hot tea (Yes, hot tea. I’ve always enjoyed it but only recently did it occur to me that I can have it anytime I want. If that makes me non-Southern, then so be it.), I have a 401k and a credit card with cash back rewards, I invested in my first Erin Condren Life Planner (I’m hooked now), I’ve found myself entertaining the thought of participating in a half-marathon on multiple occasions (though my longest running distance ever was a little over 3 miles. Hey, dream big!), and I read the news instead of just pop culture headlines. I also did my first tire burnout at a busy intersection because I believe that some things aren’t meant to be outgrown. If this year has been good for anything so far, it’s definitely the investment in myself. I could do better, but I could always do worse too.
So here’s my cheesy half-way through 23 list of (no-super-obvious) things I believe every early 20-something should do:
1. Read devotionals or something that stirs your spirit, not just your imagination.
2. Be around people of all ages and learn from them all. Don’t just listen to older people when they talk, ask questions as well. Chances are, they will love telling stories and giving advice and there’s an even higher chance that you will walk away with a lot more than you bargained for. And spend time with younger people too. Be entertained by the enthusiasm and open-mindedness of children and always listen when a teenager is talking…they will need you to tell them regularly that life isn’t over after a breakup or a bad day. Appreciate being in the middle. You may feel lost sometimes, but you fit perfectly right where you are.
3. Eat real food. Don’t just snack on junk. And be aware of what you put in your body. Don’t eat something you can’t pronounce, unless it’s foreign. Even then, you should probably Google it first just to be on the safe side.
4. Find what you’re passionate about and continually make time for it. For some it’s a lifelong journey- I still haven’t exactly narrowed my list down to what exactly makes my heart beat, but always be in pursuit of those things and you will never feel unfulfilled.
5. Invest in a crockpot. Sometimes it’s necessary to have dinner ready when you come home and only one dish to wash. Thank God for paper plates.
6. Clean your house once per week. You aren’t in college anymore- don’t let your home look like you still are.
7. Make old relationships a priority. Don’t let your time be so overtaken with jobs and chores and new ventures that you forget who really matters. Make the phone call. Make the drive. Save up for a plane ride/family vacation/girls weekend. It will always be worth it.
8. Don’t worry if you still don’t know what you’re supposed to be doing or are unsure with your direction in life. My dad is about to retire and still has never decided what he wants to be when he “grows up.” There is a time for everything and I firmly believe that your 20’s are all about patience and trusting God. Just keep hanging in there and remember, not everyone peaks in their 20’s.
9. Be a supportive alumni of whatever you did. Telling people how much better things were when you were there is for high school. We’re older and more wise now…give good advice and always cheer on your successors, for better or worse.
10. Get a job. Even if it’s not THE job. Don’t live off other people when you’re capable of supporting yourself. And don’t be a complete Millennial. There are pro’s and con’s to our generation- embrace the pro’s and try to maneuver around the con’s as much as possible to prove that our generation is not completely worthless.
11. Wear sunscreen and don’t smoke cigs, for crying out loud. Your skin’s cellular turnover (or whatever the heck it’s called) is slowing down, just like your metabolism. Live accordingly.
So there you have it; I have now given my Facebook-advertisement-worthy blog advice for 20-somethings. Sorry if you were expecting a nice even numbered list- I don’t do even numbers. Ever. Not even on my alarm clock. And that’s another great thing about being 23- I don’t care if we don’t see eye to eye. Makes life that much more colorful.
Here’s to the next six month’s worth of 23.
Love always,
Addie
“I saw my life branching out before me like the green fig tree in the story. From the tip of every branch, like a fat purple fig, a wonderful future beckoned and winked. One fig was a husband and a happy home and children, and another fig was a famous poet and another fig was a brilliant professor, and another fig was Ee Gee, the amazing editor, and another fig was Europe and Africa and South America, and another fig was Constantin and Socrates and Attila and a pack of other lovers with queer names and offbeat professions, and another fig was an Olympic lady crew champion, and beyond and above these figs were many more figs I couldn’t quite make out. I saw myself sitting in the crotch of this fig tree, starving to death, just because I couldn’t make up my mind which of the figs I would choose. I wanted each and every one of them, but choosing one meant losing all the rest, and, as I sat there, unable to decide, the figs began to wrinkle and go black, and, one by one, they plopped to the ground at my feet.” –Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar
“I’d discovered, after a lot of extreme apprehension about what spoons to use, that if you do something incorrect at table with a certain arrogance, as if you knew perfectly well you were doing it properly, you can get away with it and nobody will think you are bad-mannered or poorly brought up. They will think you are original and very witty.” –Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar
“What a man wants is a mate and what a woman wants is infinite security,’ and, ‘What a man is is an arrow into the future and a what a woman is is the place the arrow shoots off from.” –Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar
I have a hard time writing about America. Not because of my lack of love for this great nation, but more so because I don’t know exactly how to put how I feel into words. I do this with people I love also. I don’t always come off as appreciative or sympathetic or loving or sincere as I truly am because I am so afraid that what I will say can never come close to my actual feelings. I can tell you all day how much I “love” shopping and dove hunting and Pretty Little Liars and lattes and sleeping in, because I know those things don’t care if I think twice about them. I also love words, but they can never do justice for a truly heartfelt emotion like love.
I love God. I love my family and the way I was raised. I love my hometown. I love horses and the way they communicate with and soften my soul and how being around them has bonded my family. And I love my country. Though these are pretty obvious statements, that’s about as far as I can go with them. Anything less is not enough, but any more would still not justify them enough for me.
I hope that everyone genuinely appreciates the ones they truly love today. So many have sacrificed things they love for us to be able to do so. Let this day be a reminder for every. single. day. of just how blessed we are. Cling tight to your loved ones and thank God for them every day. Cling tight to your freedom, it’s only by it that we can chase our passions and dreams and the other things we “love.” Cling tight to the land that we live on which, God willing, provides us all we need and allows us to also meet the needs of others abroad. Cling tight to your right to voice your opinion and never ever think that you don’t matter. Cling tight to your neighbor, even those that you do not love, because together we are a strong and diversified nation. We can only prosper when we learn to be a united front. Divided we fall. The United States of America is not just a country or a big plot of land sandwiched between two others. America is her people and we represent her every day in what we say and do, in the way we carry ourselves, in what we post, in what we think, in what we believe.
Being American is not always about fighting and rebellion. It’s about standing up for the little man and doing what is right. It’s not about absolute power or being better than anyone else. It’s about allowing everyone the opportunity to use their strengths where others are weak, so that we all have the chance to flourish. It’s not about pushing your thoughts on other people and angering when they disagree. It’s about finding the joy in the idea that we can all have different opinions and still thrive under one diversified governing body. It’s not about political warfare and self-defense and birth rights. It’s about understanding that we are a fallen creation that is going to face dark times and hard questions, but knowing we can get through them.
And to me, being American is owning a gun for defense, not offense. And speaking of defense, my America is about football. And the marching band. My America is going to church and believing. Believing. My America is driving to the grocery store on Sunday and waiting in line at the checkout. It’s choosing where you want to go to college. It’s a funny movie. It’s fashion trends and diet fads and apple pie moonshine. It’s freedom of expression and parents who teach their children respect- how to earn it and how to show it. It’s getting what you work for, not what you think you’re entitled to. And it’s never about settling for less that you deserve. It is chasing dreams and opportunity. Opportunity. And it doesn’t get any better.
I hope today you remember what threatened this country 12 years ago on this day. And I hope you are grateful to still call it yours. I hope you also keep everything you love in mind when considering our current situations at home and abroad. And most of all, I hope you love America like I do. But I hope you can say it much better than I.
Love always,
Addie
“The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement. It is a difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us ourselves have grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position.” – James Truslow Adams, The Epic of America
“It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press. It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the organizer, who gave us the freedom to demonstrate. It is the soldier, who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag. And whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag.” –Father Dennis Edward O’Brien, USMC
“Part of the American dream is to live long and die young. Only those Americans who are willing to die for their country are fit to live.” –Douglas MacArthur
Breaking out of the Bootheel 