28 Years Later

Tomorrow is my 28th birthday.

I know, I know, how can I possibly be that old with such youthful looks, I hear you cry! Well, alas, my friends, it is true.

Funny that several years ago I would have shuddered at the thought of being so close to 30, because back then I was scared of getting older and of life slipping away from me. Funny, because now I feel as though I’m living life more than I ever did back then. Funny, because now I am so much happier with the concept of ‘me’ than I ever was then. How naive and foolish to think that youth is the be-all-and-end-all.

This time last year I would never have foreseen the changes that have taken place in the last 12 months. Time really does fly when you’re having fun. Because of this, I thought I would stop for a minute and remember all of the things that have happened since my last birthday to show how thankful I am for each and every experience.

Since this time last year:

I visited Dublin with work, marvelled at the Google offices there (and ate some of their free food, yum!) as well as drinking a pint of Guinness at the Guinness factory whilst enjoying a great view of the city.

I went on my first solo trip to Vietnam. I had the time of my life; I ate amazing food, made new friends, drunk the cheapest beer I’ve ever found, rode on the back of a motorbike in the pouring rain, took my first overnight train ride, shot an AK47, rode through rice paddies and past water buffalos on a bicycle and kayaked in Halong Bay. But most importantly of all, I learned more about myself in that short time than I ever had in the 27 years previously.

I attended my first formal Christmas Ball at an army headquarters in Harrogate. How I survived that night without getting alcohol poisoning, I will never know. The less said about the amount of drink consumed that night, the better.

I joined an amateur dramatics and operatic group and performed in a musical and stage play with them. My confidence since joining this group has increased tenfold, not to mention my circle of friends. It also reignited my love for singing, dancing and acting on the stage.

I started my blog and joined the world of Twitter, where I discovered a whole new circle of like-minded people around the world. The power of social media never fails to amaze and entertain me and I’m astounded by how generous, kind and supportive relative strangers can be.

I met a cute American boy who loves dogs and travelling as much as I do. Unfortunately, cute American boys tend to live in America. Sigh.

I discovered that Skype is possibly one of the best things ever invented. And it’s free. (See reference to cute American boys above.)

I took my first ever meditation class. And loved it.

I visited St Louis and went to my first ever baseball game, ate my first ever Buffalo chicken wings, toasted ravioli and butter cake and watched my first ever drive-in movie. It was so much fun.

I sold my house, moved back in with my parents and had to re-home my two gorgeous little doggies. This was the most stressful weekend of my life. But you know what? I got through it. And it all happened so that I can have a better life in the future. It also reiterated how generous my parents are and how they would do more for me than I could ever repay them for.

I attended the most amazing wedding in the history of the world (no exaggeration) in New York City during a “heatpocalypse”. I will remember that weekend forever, it was nothing short of amazing.

Putting it all down in print has reminded me of the mixture of emotions I have felt over this last year. It has been so much better than I ever could’ve hoped for and I wouldn’t even change the difficult bits. I can only hope the next year is just as fun-filled and exciting as this previous one has been. And if I get my way, it most certainly will be.