a new year and a new decade: thoughts on thirty

it's my birthday, and at 1:34pm today i'll turn thirty.  

i've been thinking about my thirtieth birthday for the past 9 years, and now that it's here it comes with mixed emotions.  30 rolled in quietly and modestly.  not with the pomp and circumstance or the grandeur that my naive 21 year old self imagined.  instead it just snuck in and now it's here to stay.    

it's hard for me to let go of my twenties.  it's amazing (and exhausting) to think of what has happened and how drastically my life has changed in the course of the past ten years.  my twenties brought some of my greatest joys, accomplishments, and memories.  however, in the past decade i also experienced the greatest heartbreak that i have ever known.  life sure is a roller coaster.

since it's my birthday, allow me to impart upon you ten things i have learned and found to be true over the course of my 29 years, 364 days, and several hours on this earth:

1. everything happens for a reason

2. life works in mysterious ways

3. things don't always work out as planned  

4. the only constant in life is change  

5. good things come to those who are patient and persistent 

6. where there's a will there's a way

7. be kind to yourself and take care of yourself

8. follow your heart and your gut

9. don't take things for granted

10. truly, the greatest gift in life is love

getting older is so strange.  the calendar says i'm 30, but i feel like i'm 23 (and according to most people, i look like a teenager).  somewhere along the way the numbers got jumbled.  

as i close the chapter on my twenties today, i'm looking forward to seeing what my thirties will bring.  here's to a new year and a new decade!

love, laurie