Birthday milestones are everywhere you turn. You're either hitting your double digit years, becoming old enough to drive, old enough to claim independence, old enough to drink alcohol or old enough to know you're getting old. This year will mark one in my series of milestones, with this one being my 30th. The funny thing about turning 30 is that there really isn't anything ground-breaking that accompanies its arrival.
Some say that by 30, one should be more settled into life. Married. Raising a family. Progressing in their career. Others vehemently argue that 30 is just a continuation of the glorious 20s. I have a feeling these beliefs are largely formulated around one's own experience and whether it was a good or bad one. Regardless, it's a very fuzzy milestone. At 21, no one can really argue about what you're supposed to be doing. Get thee to the bar and order as many drinks (legally) as possible! Just not the case with 30. I think someone really needs to put together the "owner's manual" for 30.
What am I supposed to be doing after I turn 30? Should I be panicked that I'm not married, raising a family and following the favored, mainstream American path? Am I going to feel more wise? That's the lone theme I could find in researching various reflections on turning 30. I'm about to learn a lot of important lessons on life. And here I thought I'd learned a lot to this point! I guess the concept of learning more sends a shiver down my spine. Between my own reality and the onslaught of reality television, I'm just not sure how much more reality and lessons in life my soul can handle.
And so, as my 30th birthday nears, I guess I will sit back, 3-D glasses in hand, and prepare myself for the new wave of reality that is about to hit. I resolve to take all that life has to offer in stride and maybe compose the owner's manual for turning 30.
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