Twenty Things.

With social media, blog post go viral all the time. A trend in the popularity of posts as of late seems to be the infamous lists depicting the “33 things to be before you’re 33,” or “20 things you must do in your 20s,” and even posts lecturing on why getting married is wrong…or right. Whatever the subject, there is probably a “how-to” list. yada yada yada..

One day, I stumbled on a post where someone when on to list 18 things they accomplished before they turned 18. This kind of lead to a road of inspiration. I literally grabbed a scrap piece of paper and started scribbling out this blog post. Is it genius (of course…) no. Is it . revolutionary? No. Will you rethink life? Probably not. Will it inspire you? Maybe. I like the sound of maybe, so feast your eyes upon this magnificently mediocre post.

20 Lesson I’ve Learned in my 20 years of life. I know, I know, you’re thinking “uhmmm I’m pretty sure that idea’s been coined sweetheart. JUST WAIT. It is in fact  20 lessons I have learned in my two decades upon the face of this planet BUT, it is a post about 20 things I have learned and each number on the list corresponds to a lesson I learned during that very year of my life (so 1 = 1 year old, 2 = 2 years old, 3, 4, 5, etc.). You get the point right? So shall we begin?

1. Oh one year old. I clearly have little first hand recollection of the lessons learned, but many of the milestones at this age are pretty typical. No I was not baby Einstein. I don’t remember my first wobbly moves around the house, but I do know at one I learned to crawl. I learned my parents were super awesome. I learned that crying gets me attention and that everything I could pick up should probably stuck into my mouth and tasted.

2. To draw. I know, you’re like yeah, shove a marker in a two year old’s hand and they’ll scribble over everything. But, according to  my parents I was drawing very human-like pictures at this point. They were very impressed, they mention it to this day, but they might be bias.

3. This one is heavy. At three, I learned life wasn’t forever. As I stared at my late grandmother in her casket, I got my first lesson in death. I hated cancer. I missed my ma’ma. I couldn’t understand, why her?

4. Jumping in front of tables. around tables, and in the proximity of tables in a fit of joy would not end in happiness. Blood, tears, and a hospital trip later, you better believe I stood very still near all tables.

5. I was always a social butterfly, but at five I entered kindergarten. At this age I learned that talking while the teacher was talking is a “no, no.” I realized that simply socializing could cause me to miss out on fun things…like recess. Though I knew talking got me into trouble, I just couldn’t seem to learn not to talk. My mother said my report cards were always great, but the comments always said “Michelle is a great student, but she socializes far too much.”

6. Taking a punch to face not only hurts, but is most definitely a painful way to lose those precious baby teeth (but it paid well…)

7.  At this point, I began growing out of the “talking too much in class” phase to the “kissing up gets me candy” phase. Becoming a leader meant privileges…and candy and I loved candy.

8. Hair grows back, even after awful, terrible haircuts. I also learned that doing my own homework was a good thing…my daddy was sure relieved.

9.  I discovered my competitive side. I mean, up to this point, I had always raced my brothers and such, but at nine everything was a competition. Recess was a competition. Gym class was a competition. Math class was a competition. Even lunch time was a competition.

10. Double digits was exciting. It also seemed at 10 that time took a leap. Someone turned the dial and suddenly life sped up. This is kind of when I started learning time quickly escapes you.  At this point I wanted to both grow-up, and stay a kid.

11. At eleven,  I had to make the transition from elementary school to middle school. I began to learn to speak up for myself and for my values. I learned that womanhood was just around the corner. I felt like I was grown up but reflecting back I was still just a big kid.

12. I discovered myself. As a middle school girl I suddenly became more self aware, self absorbed, and self conscious. Don’t even get me started on make-up.  Let me just say, I thought it looked good…but in reality, it was somewhat reminiscent of a raccoon.

13. Oh boys. I learned that boys are fun. Boys are heartbreak. Boys are an adventure, especially at 13. I wrote so many notes that several trees were most definitely affected. I drove my parents crazy talking on the phone for hours on end. They probably missed countless phonecalls…but at least I got to talk to all those boys…

14. Dark hair, don’t care. High school began and to this day that feels like just yesterday.  Though I’m 20, I often joke, I still feel 14. Life went in fast forward from this point on. My life was transformed , for the better. I found stability and more importantly, happiness.

15. I learned to challenge myself. No longer could I make excuses. Ownership became crucial to my path to success.

16. Sixteen. A year had past with my high school sweetie and at 16 I learned to trust. No longer bandaged from prior wounds, but healed and happy.

17. Normally an uneventful birthday, but 17 was a momentous year of lessons. I got my first job. I learned not only the value of a dollar, but the payoff of hard work. I learned “If you have time for leaning, then you have time for cleaning.” Just because there were enough hours in a day to do it all, didn’t mean I could actually do it all while remaining sane. I spent my year burnt out and overextended, but I finished high school in the top 10% of my class.  Earned scholarships and paid the rest of my tuition myself.

18. Scratch offs are a slippery slope. College is stressful. Living with strangers has its ups and downs. Liberal colleges are like a ghost town during the day on weekends. My family is everything and I love them more than I thought humanly possible.

19.  I learned to push myself, even when things are rough. Even when I feel like I am smothered in stress, I learned to preserve. More importantly I got a valuable lesson in appreciation. I learned even though it is important to continue to push yourself, it is equally valuable to take a most and soak in the little things.

Also at 19, I learned that though money does mean a lot, it is absolutely not everything, nor is it happiness.

20. At twenty I have found myself inbetween. What I mean by that is I am grown up, but I am not wise. There is so much left to learn, so much life to live, and so many memories left to make. I still have no idea what I want to do with my life and that is terrifying, but I’ve learned to enjoy the ride.

So there…twenty years of lessons. Thrilling right? What lessons have you learned? Which were the most important?

Thank you for reading!