So...it has been a little over a month since I have been this milestone known as 30. I've had a chance to take it in, to acknowledge the fact that I am no longer in my 20s and to realize what makes being 30 so monumental. In discussions I have had with family and friends about this big birthday my true feelings about 30 are this:
1) Age is a state of mind to me- has and always will be. Heck, I still feel like I was just in high school a summer or two ago and now here I am married with my second kiddo on the way.
2) The reason 30 feels the way it does is because I feel like it is finally closing the door to adolescence. Sure, by your late 20s you may start to feel this way- you could have a career, a degree or two under your belt, a kiddo or more, but for the most part you still have this sense that you haven't completely turned the corner to the true side of what adulthood has to offer. So, maybe it is just me, but I feel like 30 is that point. Not to mean that it is an ending point of course, just the point where you turn that corner and see where the rest of your life as an "adult" is headed. Maybe that sounds naive, but there ya go, it is how I feel.
The past 30 years have been years of growth {obviously}, mistakes and challenges, successes and failures, disappointments and rewards, knowledge and emotions. They have been past the lifetime for some and a beautiful mess that is all my own. And, as cliche' as it sounds, I have been blessed to have the life I have been given. 30 is just a number- but it is the one I am at right now- the next marking point for the rest of what there is in store as I try and figure out this grown-up thing. And, chances are, I probably won't have it all figured out, and I'm okay with that. {More growth on my part for those that have known me for years ;) }
I saw on a post from a friend something called a Nectar list as opposed to a bucket list, and I like it. It reminds me a bit of Ann Voskamp's 1,000 Gifts- reflecting on the things you are thankful for right now, things that you've lived and loved, simple or extravagant. So, without further ado, here is a list of 30 on my very own Nectar list (somewhat chronological, but in no certain order).
1. I have a vivid memory of a very happy and nurturing childhood.
2. I got to play on and own Atari, Original Nintendo {and every one leading up to Nintendo 64}, Sega Game Gear, and Virtual Boy.
3. I have more holiday traditions {and memories to go with them} than I can count. My dad was the Clark Grizzwold of our neighborhood.
4. I own a silver spoon collection with spoons from my family's {mostly my dad's} travels all over the world.
5. My great grandmother was a big part of my life until she passed when I was in 4th grade. I am named after her. She was the stuff tough farm girls are made of, yet the sweetest little lady at the same time.
6. I have lit fireworks for a family fireworks show on the farm that we used to own in Perkins, OK.
7. I have seen the beauty in an Oklahoma sunrise and sunset.
8. I have been to more than one St. Louis Cardinals baseball game.
9. I went to all 4 Six Flags in the state of Texas in the span of 10 days and rode every single roller coaster they had to offer at the time.
10. Thanks to my mom I knew the value of another language- I could count in Spanish as soon as I could count in English.
11. I learned and played in a handbell choir for 6 years and sang in choirs most of my youth.
12. I have taken lessons on the piano, violin, and clarinet.
13. I have a brother with whom I got along with, could imagine with, and still have quirky nerdy things in common with.
14. I survived elementary and middle school with huge glasses and frizzy hair.
15. I vaulted {did gymnastics} on horses.
16. I have seen Stevie Nicks {with and without Fleetwood Mac}, U2 and Coldplay in concert.
17. I was there when my dad took his last breath.
18. I met my best friend for the first time when I was 4 years old, and she was the maid of honor in my wedding.
19. I have built snow forts, seen snow falling quietly at midnight, and gone skiing on the mountains of Colorado and New Mexico.
21. I sewed on the numbers of a jersey that Adrian Peterson wore.
22. I married my high school sweetheart that loves the same things I do.
23. I have put my feet in the Gulf of Mexico, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.
24. I cried 3 times when I went to Disney Land for the first time because I was so happy.
25. I have experienced places like New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Hawaii, and Cancun.
26. I taught and got to love on elementary school kids for 5 years.
27. I have experienced healing, provision, and peace through my relationship with the Lord.
28. My mom was a stay at home mom and her impact on my life made me want to be that for my own kids.
29. I gave birth to a curly haired girl with blue eyes.
30. I know what it means to love something and others so much that I cry from joy, pain, and every kind of emotion imaginable.
I could go on and on- but I will keep it to 30 as my current number in life dictates. So, here's to the next 30 plus years and the sweet nectar that life will bring from it.
And, I am so very thankful to be where I am to have a chance to celebrate what I have been given and to look forward to the future. Here's lookin' at you 30.
