Musings of a Twenty One Year Old
If you are anyone who's had any sort of contact with me in the last year and a half, I've likely made mention about some long, helpful period of self-discovery I've been on due to a bunch of life altering events. Okay, so some of this is true, but I can't help but believe that a lot of it coincided with something that everyone my age has experienced or is just about to.
I'm twenty one years old now. Three years into college. It's pretty weird. This past new years, I remarked to some friends that this decade is almost over. It's so strange to think about, but then I look at some video tapes my friends and I had made at the turn of the century, and then think about how long ago that actually was. I remember the groundless idealism we all had, and how things just seemed so free and open ended. It's crazy how life has dragged some of us down, brought us to levels that we never thought we'd hit, or maybe in some cases, really didn't change us at all.
I think about the time you hit twenty, you hit what I've been calling the "Not-Quite-Quarter-Life Crisis". Things that used to be interesting don't really seem to matter as much as they used to. Activities that may have been fun a year or two before now just feel like a waste of time. It's not so much the quantity of friends you have but more the quality - and I think a lot of people have trouble with that. I did. I'm incredibly lucky that I escaped a lot of the trappings people my age have fallen victim to, but at the same time, I've encountered my own unique set of road blocks.
The "Not-Quite-Quarter-Life Crisis" - I've basically put it as, "you want to change the world, but have little patience to do it." That's okay. You'll eventually get to the point where you realize these things take time, and then you're able to see things clearer.
I recently went to a party that blew my mind. Many of the people I talked to - mostly old friends - have moved out of their parents homes, gotten great internships/jobs, plan to marry soon, and even have children. I'm just in awe that we're at that point now.
All the bullshit has melted away.
We've arrived. My generation has finally reached adulthood.
I still don't have a lot of money or my own place, but I'm getting there. All of my adolescent anxieties have seemed to melt away and I've got a confidence I really didn't have before. I'm still young and have a lot going for me, and I'm very grateful for that.
This stage of life is revelatory. I'm still trying to make the right adjustments, but when it really comes down to it - I'm free to do whatever from here. It's a power I'm sort of uneasy about handling, but at the same time, it's a responsibility I'm strangely ready for.
I'm twenty one years old now. Three years into college. It's pretty weird. This past new years, I remarked to some friends that this decade is almost over. It's so strange to think about, but then I look at some video tapes my friends and I had made at the turn of the century, and then think about how long ago that actually was. I remember the groundless idealism we all had, and how things just seemed so free and open ended. It's crazy how life has dragged some of us down, brought us to levels that we never thought we'd hit, or maybe in some cases, really didn't change us at all.
I think about the time you hit twenty, you hit what I've been calling the "Not-Quite-Quarter-Life Crisis". Things that used to be interesting don't really seem to matter as much as they used to. Activities that may have been fun a year or two before now just feel like a waste of time. It's not so much the quantity of friends you have but more the quality - and I think a lot of people have trouble with that. I did. I'm incredibly lucky that I escaped a lot of the trappings people my age have fallen victim to, but at the same time, I've encountered my own unique set of road blocks.
The "Not-Quite-Quarter-Life Crisis" - I've basically put it as, "you want to change the world, but have little patience to do it." That's okay. You'll eventually get to the point where you realize these things take time, and then you're able to see things clearer.
I recently went to a party that blew my mind. Many of the people I talked to - mostly old friends - have moved out of their parents homes, gotten great internships/jobs, plan to marry soon, and even have children. I'm just in awe that we're at that point now.
All the bullshit has melted away.
We've arrived. My generation has finally reached adulthood.
I still don't have a lot of money or my own place, but I'm getting there. All of my adolescent anxieties have seemed to melt away and I've got a confidence I really didn't have before. I'm still young and have a lot going for me, and I'm very grateful for that.
This stage of life is revelatory. I'm still trying to make the right adjustments, but when it really comes down to it - I'm free to do whatever from here. It's a power I'm sort of uneasy about handling, but at the same time, it's a responsibility I'm strangely ready for.
