You see, when I was half the age I am now, I remember sitting with my best friend on the volleyball court stretching before practice and games talking about what our lives would be like when we were the number on our jerseys. When we were 17, the number 34 seemed soooo far away. It seemed like when we became 34, we would have everything we ever wanted.
I remember saying that when I turned 34, I would be married, have a career teaching, and I would have two children. I described the new car I would be driving (a convertible of course!), and the dream home I would be living in. I planned to live in the same town I grew up in.
A lot has happened in those 17 years and it has happened sooooo fast! I don't live in the fancy house of my dreams; my car isn't new nor a convertible; I never married nor do I have two children, and I don't live in the same town I grew up in; I moved away to follow my teaching dreams.
It's funny how conversations stick with you over the years. You have dreams, hopes, and ambitions, and you can be so focused on achieving them, and then when they don't pan out as planned, especially over the years, it can be really disappointing.
I've accomplished a lot over 34 years, and maybe I don't have everything I've ever wished for or wanted. Maybe it just wasn't meant to be.
But what I do have, is family and friends in my hometown that love me for "me", and I have friends who have become like family to me where we live now. I also have my health, a car to drive, and a roof over my head, a job that I love, a church that is like a family to me, and a new positive outlook on life. For all of these things, I'm truly grateful.
I'm excited to see what the next 17 or 34 years will bring......and it will absolutely go by just as fast, and quite possibly even faster than these years have gone by.......
Maybe some day I'll get the dream house, new car, ring, or another child. But, I'm ok right now at the number I couldn't wait to be......34! Happy birthday to me! :)
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