Twenty-Five Years

It really is kinda strange when I think about it for too long.

I've been alive for twenty-five years.

And each one of those years is a blessing to me, for so many my age don't make it as long as I have. Taken by illness or injury, a cruel twist of fate or even their own hand... Life is harsh to those who wish to grow and thrive. I am happy to understand how fortunate I am that I have lived to the age that I have.

Both my brother and my cousin were taken far too young. I pay my respects to relatives in the cemetery who haven't gotten nearly as far as I and I thank my lucky stars for having been given this chance to survive. Each year, however difficult, has been an opportunity to breach the heavens and to learn all that I can. To trek down the path of self-actualization and to learn from my elders and peers.

I'm angry at the notion that growing older is a bad thing. I hear people who talk to one another in coffee shops and supermarkets, complaining that they are growing older and that they have one more wrinkle or stretch mark to add to their body. So what? Life isn't about living like a porcelain doll. Life is an experience, we should live it as such.

Why waste time to think about how we'll look when we're in our eighties? We should be living in the present because it is only in the present that we can do anything about our future. Worrying about a wrinkle or a little bit of crow's feet around the eye isn't going to do anyone any good. I have major laugh lines around my mouth and do I spend my time worrying about them? Nope! I'm a smiler. I always have been and I always will be.

So here's to another wonderful year full of experience and possibility. I only wish to have the opportunity to look beyond my faults and to learn from my mistakes with a light heart and a head held high.

To Twenty-Five!