Remember when life was simple? When your most pressing concern was the possibility of getting bullied at recess? When you lived in the same city as all your friends, and the hardest decisions were frighteningly not even in your hands? High school was even scarier, with its boyfriends, kids with beards, and even more new people. College was yet a distant dream, and those elusive college kids seemed so grown up.
Because we wished away the carefree, easy years.
As a kid, you wished away your years. How soon until you’re finally a teenager? How soon until you get your license? How soon until you graduate and can move out? When will you be 21? We are always moving, hoping, searching for that next milestone; hoping it will somehow be better, more exciting.
Fast forward a few years. You’re in college, or maybe you’ve recently graduated. The weight of the world sometimes feels like it’s all on your shoulders. You’ve moved away from some of your friends and some have moved away from you. You’ve lost loved ones and hard decisions have come to pass.
Time goes so, so fast. Suddenly, people you know are getting married. We are even becoming old enough to be mothers and fathers. We are the next generation of teachers. Remember your teachers, good and bad? That’s us now. Before you know it, we will be the politicians, the CEOs, the deans and the presidents.
Does this terrify you? Good. It should! This whole adult thing is scary. It’s uncertain, lonely, and terrifying. But you know what? It can also be exciting, promising, and hopeful. You basically get to do whatever you want, whenever you want (you know, when it fits into your work schedule). Your eight year old self would kill for that deal. Want to eat an entire pizza on a Tuesday, just because? Great, go ahead. Want to stay up to an ungodly hour (because Netflix) when you have responsibilities the next day? Sure thing. Want to sit on the couch in your sweats with nothing but a glass of wine to keep you company on a Saturday night? You do you.
Stop wishing away your time.
For better or worse, you’re an adult now, and it probably came a hell of a lot faster than you expected. Why did being an adult a? Because we wished away the carefree, easy years. Sorry current self, the past version of me was an idiot. We spent so many years wishing we were at a different point in our lives – and maybe we are still wishing this.
What does wishing away time get you? Does it make you happy? No. It deprives you of the ability to enjoy the moment your life is in, and it later fills you with regret as you wonder why you didn’t appreciate what you had.
Slow down and appreciate each moment as it comes. Take the good and the bad from your experience. Learn from your mistakes and savor the times that make you happy. We may be adults now, but we still have a long road ahead of us. Don’t wish away your time – cherish it.
Featured image via David Geib on Pexels
