I turned 30 last week and it felt like a foregone conclusion. Partly because I was dreading and/or anticipating the big 3-0 throughout my 29th year and partly because time has become an abstract concept during COVID.
I wanted to get off the hedonic treadmill for a second to reflect on the last three decades. There’s nothing I love more than lists; so here goes the list of 30 things I’ve learnt about myself and the world in the last 30 years.
- Love is worth the wait
- Books are my window to the world
- I write my emotions better than I can speak them
- Without music, my life feels empty
- The internet has shaped my identity for better or for worse
- You make your own family
- To some degree, we’re all prisoners of our birth
- If you choose right, friends don’t come and go; they stay
- Leaving home was hard, but staying would have been harder
- Learning is exercise for the brain, it makes me happy
- Exercise is exercise for the body, it makes me happy too
- Food is fuel and food is joy; food is not the enemy
- It can take a long, long time to feel comfortable in your own skin
- Based on historical averages, things that taste weird now will taste good in five years (see red wine, coffee, oysters)
- My work is a huge part of my life and I derive self-worth from it
- Personal aesthetics are a manifestation of the inner mind
- I don’t want to be a billionaire; it’s not worth the trouble
- If I set my mind to something, there’s a good chance I will make it happen
- Time > money, always
- My puppy fever > baby fever
- I have a stupidly low tolerance for unnecessary discomfort
- Celebrations and lovely meals with tipsy friends make the world go round
- Getting off Facebook and Instagram has freed my mind
- Expensive skincare pays dividends
- San Francisco is home now, it feels like home now
- Never buy a sub $20 bottle of wine
- It’s incredibly hard to change as an adult; I’m grateful I had the gift of good morals and habits (thanks parents!)
- Being generous with my time, money, and affection has paid back in spades
- When you look back at your life, all the dots will connect
- I’m still seeking my life’s purpose(s)
Great piece Nikitha. I kinda resonate with almost all you wrote at 30. Connecting dots is surely a must. That is where your current purpose probably lies. You can help others connect more dots. You already started with this blog. Thanks for all your writings. Cheers to the new age.
That is so kind of you to say Sola – thank you!