26 is an awkward age. Even more so than 25. At least 25 is a milestone age. It means something. No one really cares that you’re 26. Well, your parents might. They’re mostly grateful you’re still alive really (which is the true test of parenthood). As long as you don’t go and get yourself killed, they can pat themselves on the back for a job well done.
But there isn’t anything special about 26. You’re 26, so what? At 26 your friends are all either getting married, pregnant, or just plain disappear on yo’ ass.
You feel like you’re the only one sitting back, arms folded, watching all this unfold while everyone is running around like a chicken with its head cut off. Scrambling to get their life in order. It’s like someone turned on the “Oh shit” button in their head.
I’m grateful to have already landed a great job at 25. That’s one thing I don’t have to worry about. Money. Phew. Most people can’t say that. But everything else is basically a work in progress.
But at 26, I have an amazing job that I love. I make way more than I ever expected to. I have beautiful, loving friends that care about me (which means the world to me). I’ve just received my Project Management Certificate. I am about to embark on a new journey at work which will open so many new doors for me. I do Crossfit for freak’s sake!
Why is 26 so much better than any other age? Well let’s look at the facts:
At 24, I was miserable in a dead end job with a She-Devil for a boss.
At 25, I was struggling to make ends meet.
But at 26, I’ve finally found my footing. I’m getting to know myself everyday. I’m showering myself with love everyday, because that’s what I deserve. I know this now…at 26. Not at 22, not at 23, not even at 25. But I know this at 26 that life is not out there to get you. It’s there to be lived! For you to make the best of it. So what something isn’t going your way. It makes no sense to sit there and sulk about it. Change it! Turn it into something you’re going to love! I know all this now. And because I do, life can never get me down.
Of course there are times when I want to just go home, crawl under my covers and cry myself to sleep because nothing is going my way, but I can’t. I can’t ever let myself go back to that dark place again. I can’t go back to hating myself. Literally hating myself. How could I hate myself?!! I promised to always love myself. When I feel like I can’t go another minute, like my legs are going to give out from under me and I just want to scream, I drag myself to Crossfit, and take out all my frustrations there. And you know what, I actually feel so much better afterwards.
Sure there isn’t a man in my life. But I’m grateful for that, too. Yes, I am actually grateful for that. You see, I don’t want to settle with someone just to be with someone. I’m perfectly fine by myself. I know that I deserve real love. Not the you’ll-do-for-now kind of love. If the guys I’m dating now aren’t cutting it, then guess what, they get cut. I’ll wait for as long as I have to. He’s out there. I know. But right now, it’s my time. It’s time to be 26 and live my life, see the world, meet new people, learn new things, be the best version of myself that I can be.
I am so unattached it’s almost scary to think of all the things I can do.
So here’s to being 26, and never settling for less.
Cheers Darlings! xoxo ShoesOverBooze
