Remember that song."Today is my birthday, going to have a good time?" I found out, in my area, I can have three lobster dinners for free, half off at the local comedy place, and free drinks until I'm blue in the face. Hooray! That's the good news. The bad news is I have to pay hundreds of dollars in new plates for my vehicles and I am a year older, but as my dear friend always tells me, it's better then the alternative, which is death. I honestly never thought of living to be forty one years old. I figured between global disasters, raising teenagers, family, and not always living as healthy as I could have, would have caught up with me by now. I have a new sense of being after I turned forty. I have heard many women say this when they are this age. Women have a better grasp on reality, know what priorities really matter, and in what order they should come in.
Women learn to forgive and forget, realize patience is a virtue, and when looking back in the past, the bigger picture becomes so much more obvious, they wonder why they never saw it in the first place. They realize everything does happen for a reason, to not sweat the small stuff, and realize, almost everything is the small stuff. They understand they are only as old as they feel, and only as happy as they allow themselves to be.
I have awakened to the knowledge, that thinking positive, is much healthier then thinking negatively. I have also succumbed to the idea that we choose our own destinies created by the belief systems we were raised with, plus the experiences we have gone through. I believe most people do the best they can given the coping skills, education, and love they have been exposed to. I believe war happens because of useless power struggles in our attempts to make everyone become like us. How boring would life be without diversity.
When I travel to a foreign destination, this is when it hits me the strongest, just how diverse and special America is. I appreciate how lucky I was to be born in this country. The opportunities to exceed is bred into our belief systems; that we can do anything we want to as long as we work hard enough to get it! I look back and think of all of the miracles in my life and how many times, when things looked the bleakest, and most difficult, God, or some higher power, has come through for me, and not only solved the dilemma, but dusted me off and set me on my way again.
I know that every good thing I do to help others will come back to me and my children ten fold, and doing the right thing is never an option, but a privilege. How many times have we been put into a position in life, where doing the right thing, wasn't an option? In order to keep our jobs, health insurance, and maintain our families livelihood, we couldn't do what we thought was right. All I know is it never feels good to do the wrong thing.
I appreciate a beautiful warm and sunny day. I also enjoy a cold winters night, staying home to decorate a Christmas tree, while listening to the Carpenter's or Nat King Cole singing my favorite Christmas tunes. I remember all of the Christmas's I spent when the kids were younger; waiting them out on Christmas Eve to fill up their stockings.These are the things I cherish to think about as I get older. I remember getting our new dog on Christmas. She was adorable! She was half Sheltie and half Golden Retriever. She is the best dog we have ever had and guess what we named her, Christmas!
Last but not least, as I get older and reflect, I forgive myself for not always being perfect or saying the right thing. I give myself a break because in my heart I know I always tried, and I know that counts for something. I look forward to grand kids, a future in politics, and starting a different chapter in my life. I feel lucky to have seen all of the amazing things I have seen and happy to have always explored the world through travel and education. I feel blessed to have made it thus far without any major setbacks.
I have had a pretty stunning life when it comes right down to it. I am excited to see what else life has in store for me. It might not always be peaches and cream however, I feel it will never be boring. Every year on my birthday, I think to myself, "would you have imagined you would be here today and have experienced a year like this?" And every year I am more amazed. I rest my head on the lounger on my deck and squint up to see the sun set on my birthday, than it hits me, the only thing you can ultimately predict in life, is change.