Note # 17 – My Most Recent Trip Around the Sun

The orange lilies are blooming, so that means I have a birthday coming up. Thankfully it’s not one with a zero in it so I don’t feel maudlin and gripped with existential angst, although I will admit to feeling a wee bit reflective as I complete my 53rd orbit around our ever-warming sun.  Here are some things I learned on this year’s trip:

• Put your work out there in the world for everyone to see, even it if it’s scary at times.  As all the clickbait ads say: “You won’t believe what happens next!”
• For the love of God, stretch.  You’re not 28 anymore.
• Going to the pool and swimming a little is a better idea than staying home and not swimming at all.  Plus, if you time it right, as you finish your laps, you get to talk to all the fabulous older gals who are showing up for the 3:30 pm “Healing Waters” class, which they described to me as being the “Don’t Fall Down” class.
• I can’t write if I don’t walk. If I don’t go stride about the sidewalks and paths for a while and just let my mind wander, the ideas don’t show up. Lucky for me, my dog is very serious about his daily walking regimen and is quite a taskmaster for someone who weighs roughly 16 pounds.
• Self-care is the most important thing of all – sometimes this looks like eating more leafy greens, sometimes this looks like taking a little break from the news. I’ve discovered that both of those things are good for my blood pressure.
• Honesty really is the best policy.  Say it with kindness, but say what you think and then stand your ground.  This is often exhausting, but it is always the right thing.
• Everybody is fighting a battle of some sort. Everybody. Help them if you can, even if all you can do is listen.
• It’s a good idea to try a new thing from time to time.  Learn to cook something new, read a new author, try a new hobby, go to that place you’ve always wanted to see. If it turns out you don’t like that particular new thing, try a different new thing. You never know where it might lead.
• Rest.  Stop for a cup of tea and a biscuit or have a nap or just sit and let the world move on without you for a few minutes or a few hours or a few days.  (I think that last one is technically called a “vacation.”) You have to recharge your phone and laptop batteries every single day – you should be at least that nice to yourself, shouldn’t you?
• Time passes quickly. I have been reminded of this a lot lately, hearing about kids I taught when I was just starting out who are now running tech companies, performing brain surgery and having kids of their own.  I was also reminded of this fact last week when my favourite (under 25) person, a sweet, handsome young man named Paddy graduated from high school.  It feels like it was just last week that he was eleven years old and I was helping him with his homework and we were arguing about who was the best character in Harry Potter.  (He said Ron, I said Hermione.  He’s still wrong about that, but now he’s off to university.)

All in all, 53 has been a good ride.  There were some hard things and some lousy things, but I published a book, played games with my friends, made cool stuff and laughed a lot, usually with my partner who even after 20 years still seems to find my jokes hilarious.

I’m grateful for every last bit of it and I have a good feeling about 54.

P.

P.S.  Why don’t you use my birthday as an excuse to spoil yourself a little? I approve of pretty much anything that involves Prosecco, for example…