Thoughts on Turning 26

Last year was a milestone birthday in that I turned 25. I had a fun time celebrating my birthday, but there was no milestone change in my life that year. My life continued on the path that it was on, so all in all it was an exciting, though ordinary year.

"But wait!" You say. "You went to New York and South Korea and moved to Australia and started your PhD! How is that an ordinary year?"

The reality of my life is that I tend to travel in these huge spurts over a relativey short time span. So within the course of a year I may travel to 5 different countries, and then the next year hardly leave the city I'm living in. Also, this is my third time moving away from home, and there was still a lot of uncertainty about what I'd do after finishing my PhD when I left home. As for starting my PhD, there was about 2 years of planning that went ahead of that, not to mention that I knew from the moment I applied to university that I wouldn't be stopping at an undergrad degree.

So while my 25th year was an exciting and particularly enjoyable year, it didn't really feel like a milestone year to me.

26 feels different. 26 feels like a milestone year.

For the first time in my life I feel like a bona fide adult. I pay my own rent, I pay my own utilities, I cook my own food, I do my own laundry (though I've been doing that for a decade). I am self reliant, I am making big decisions about my life based on my own wants and desires and what feels right to me. I'm not dependent on anyone and no one's dependent on me. I'm starting to make a name for myself in my field. I'm also incredibly content to not be in a relationship, which is turning out to be a wonderful feeling.

I feel that I am in control of my own life now. I make the decisions that I feel are best for me, and I live with the consequences of those decisions. I've gained a great deal of self awareness in my time here and have been learning to let go of the things that would make me angry or upset or hurt in the past. I feel like a new person; a new person who is healthier and happier and more in control of her life.

Even though it means I'm closer to 30 than 20 and that I'm now half my Dad's age, it feels great to be 26!