29 was fine...

29 taught me a lot of life lessons - some great, some heartbreaking - but all lessons nonetheless. 

I had my heart ruined by a guy, I had friends write me off of their own volition. I lost a very close friend unexpectedly, I watched a lot of my close friends become parents. I spent some time soul searching (truly), I got out of my comfort zone. I tested my limits, I gave into some bad habits. I started a blog that has reached and helped so many people, I have had days where I didn't have a single ounce of positivity to share.

Looking back at my 20s as a whole? All of the above is pretty true. 

I loved hard in my early 20s, had my heart stomped on with spikes and am still healing. I made a ton of amazing friends. I graduated with both an bachelor's degree and a master's degree in the same decade of my life. I moved out of my parents' home at 24 and never looked back. I bought my own car for the first time, and prematurely had to buy another (RIP Fi). I left a job I felt was crippling my ability to grow both personally and professionally. I traveled to 2 states I had never been to, on my own. I took a chance on myself and set some goals. I let life get the best of me and allowed my excuses to overpower my discipline. I said goodbye to my childhood dog, and welcomed a new one into my heart. I tried Crossfit after writing it off for years. I made some lasting friendships there, and miss it, but don't think I am ready to go back just yet (if ever). I lost family members and friends, and think of them all the time. I cut ties with people who tried to run my life rather than just be a part of my journey.

Tomorrow is just another calendar year flip for me, I get that. But on days where I get upset because I am not where I thought I would be by now, I need to remember all of the above. I made it through some pretty dark times, stronger than ever. I managed to keep a smile on my face as my heart was shattered into a million glass shards, and pick them all up again without bleeding. I had the courage to get myself out of quite a few toxic situations, and still stand proud of who I am. 

The last 10 years were the rough draft. The next year will be the introduction and first few chapters on what my life will be. Age is just a number, I get that. There will be days where I question how I go here, why I am not further along in life both personally and professionally, why I am still the only single person in my group of friends, and so on... but at the end of the day - our lives are all individually written maps. We hold the compass. We hold the key. We set ourselves on the paths we want to be on. When the universe says it's time - things will happen. We just need to stay the course.



My birthday wish for you, reader, is that you take each day head on. You embrace the suck, you embrace the high points, and everything in between. You smile through your worst days and bring joy to those around you. I wish you an incredible life full of all the emotions we have - and the ability to fight to see the next day. Even when it's hard. Even when you've got nothing left in the tank - I believe in you. I know you can do this. And I am so excited to see where this next year of life takes us!