3 decades. 30 years. 360 months. 1,560 weeks. 10,978 days.
A
HUGE part of me wants to freak out, say this can't be true, where did
my twenties go, how am I this old, what have I truly accomplished in my
life, and on and on... But, as I look back - I have lived an amazing
life. One that others may look at and wish they had. One life. My life.
I didn't grow up with the "best"of
everything, but I did grow up with everything I needed (and much more). We
had a nice house, our own rooms, and plenty of food in the fridge. One
set of grandparents lived 10min away and we stayed with them often when
we were younger. I had clothes, shoes, and sports gear even if it was
second hand it all served its purpose and saved my parents money that
was used for our sports fees and annual family trips. It also taught me
the value of the dollar, thrift stores, a good sale, and savings! I'm
sure my mom will point out we didn't always see eye to eye, but what
teenager does especially when all the "cool" kids are dressing in name
brands, etc.
We didn't have a pool but who
needs one when all the neighbor's do and your family has a boat (and a
timeshare to Lake Havasu)! Growing up in the desert lead to outdoor
hiking adventures and fun on quads/dirt bikes both of which my dad
bought for my sister and I after much research and finding them used at a
great price via the classified ads (you know, those things prior to
Craigslist!)
I didn't get a brand spankin' new
car for my 16th birthday like 75% of my high school class, but I did
learn to drive a manual, change my oil, fix a flat, check my fluids, and
watch my tire pressure... All things hardly anyone then much less now
knows how to do! Thanks mom and dad. Not to mention my manual 4x4 1988
Pathfinder was a pretty awesome little beast.
I
don't remember much about school other than I never felt like I fit in
very well from Kindergarten all the way until my sophomore year of
college... But I do remember my parents supporting, pushing, and
tutoring me in everything I went for... From the 5th grade ELP exams, to
dual credit high school courses, and SAT studies. Through all the
homework tears they never gave up on me and I was the first one in our
family to receive a full-ride tuition scholarship followed by a
bachelor's degree (my awesome sister got the masters!). 
Sports
came and went ...didn't like gymnastics, didn't like figure skating,
but I wasn't allowed to give up without completing the session, teaching
me to follow through with things. I fell into soccer and my parents
spent years driving us all over the southwest for weekend tournaments.
The same for roller hockey, but they took it a step further being our
coaches for a number of seasons and sticking up for us as the only girls
playing.
Before I could even walk I went to
Hawaii, who knew I would move there 24yrs later? I have lived in
Arizona, California, Maryland, Hawaii, and Virginia. I have visited:
Colorado, Florida, Kentucky, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, New Jersey,
New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah,
and Washington (I didn't include drive-thru or lay-over states:
Illinois, Indiana, Oklahoma, West Virginia). I've also
traveled to Mexico (Puerto Penasco, Cabo San Lucas, San Luis, Costa
Maya, Cozumel), Canada (Victoria, BC), Belize (Belize City), and studied
abroad in New Zealand (Auckland, Rotorua, Tauranga) and Australia
(Sydney, Canberra, Cairns, Brisbane). We also went to "the happiest
place on earth" often when we were younger because my other grandparents
lived just a few miles away in Garden Grove, CA (spoiled!).
I
met my husband at 20yrs old and we got married when I was 23. Since
then we've lived in 3 states and 4 homes, had 3 guinea pigs, 4 cars
total (2 currently still), I've had 3 jobs, attended 3 churches, and
most importantly we welcomed our son into he world! It seems surreal
that this coming month we will celebrate 7yrs of marriage.
My
life hasn't been "a complete fairy tale"... I've dealt with minor things
like hurt feelings, loneliness, heartbreak, continually move to places where I know no one and
despite my degree I don't have a career or even a job to speak of at the
moment ...to major things like
my dad's cancer diagnosis/treatments, anxiety/panic attacks, losing a
set of grandparents, being ostracized by extended family, and having
what I thought were good friends fall to the wayside or leave me behind
completely. I've lost childhood friends to war and PTSD, seen friends lose
their parents/siblings, some go through terrible separations/divorce,
witnessed others battle over custody of children, and one of the worst
things ever - seeing dear friends watch their babies fight to live only
to have some pass away.
All that being said
there has been plenty of good! Weddings, babies being born, birthdays,
anniversaries, holidays, fun trips, spontaneous adventures, surprises,
girls nights, gaining lifelong friends, deepening my relationship with
Christ, and so many tiny everyday "happy moments" I've lost track of!
God
blessed me with entering this world in 1986 and 30yrs later I am still
here. A little more confident, wiser, yet rough around the edges. A good
friend posted this: "Do not regret growing older, it is a privilege
denied to many."
Here's to no regrets - only learning from mistakes, loving those I hold dear, and continually living life to the fullest!
