23 Isn't "Old"

Well, looks like I've made it to 23! I’m not going to sit here and pretend that “23” is old. To be 23, is to be fabulously young! And any of my peers who declare otherwise are, safe to say, completely delusional.

Twenty three is to be completely void of any distraction that may prevent me from spreading my wings.

Twenty three is living out all of my wildest dreams, and not leaving it to fate or to the future, to jump on a plane in order to find myself. Why wait until tomorrow? Tomorrow is a concept; a vague and unpromising entity on the brim of thought that shrivels into nothingness when doused with the torrent of cold truth that you might not be here tomorrow (it’s my mantra).

Twenty three is being exactly where I thought I’d be. Over the years, I’ve been so blessed. I’ve climbed trees that have swayed through summer breezes, trees that have seen the darkest of nights. And there I’ve sat, upon their highest of branches, perched from my castle in the clouds, feeling in all the world as if I were Cinderella. In the deepest corridors of my heart, I’m still that same girl. The only real difference between that child and her grown-up self is the complexity of her coping mechanisms. She still grows the same brown hair, cries the same tears.

Twenty three is too young to pretend that I have enough wisdom to marry, mother, and domesticate. How can I be all of that when I haven’t lived out all of the uncompromising promises I’ve made to myself over the years (which require full, encompassing selfishness)? Find myself first, define my relationship with God first, then maybe I’ll start to dab on those thoughts.

To embrace my youth, and to take my time in this amazing era called ‘early twenties,’ is a choice that is all my own. Soak in every last drop! I raise my glass to an amazing 23rd year of life… and my new mantra ‘free to be 23!”