Rain lashed the windshield of our tiny plane as it took off yesterday down a small grass and gravel runway in the middle of a sugar cane field. Bound for Liberia, Costa Rica it carried only myself, three of my family members and two strangers on what was the beginning of the end of a two-week travel adventure. Yesterday, however, not only marked the end of our travels - it also marked my last day as a 29-year-old. When I awoke this morning, I was 30.

There are many people who mourn their 30th birthdays, tears falling for the youth to which they feel they need to bid goodbye. I myself will not be saying such goodbyes. With the sun on my face, stamps in my passport and good health, friends and family I do not have much to mourn, and I have many days of youth still left to live. I do not know what the next 30 years will bring me but I can tell you this: there will be no tears today.

Years ago I made a promise to myself that I would spend my 30th birthday in a great celebration of life in all its glory and that I would spend it traveling. I have spent the past 2 weeks doing just that. I have swam in the blue-green oceans of beautiful beaches and watched orange sunsets paint the skies at night. I have sailed on boats, tried surfing, flown in tiny planes and challenged my fear of heights by hurtling down ziplines dangling 600 feet above the treetops of a rainforest. I've watched a volcano erupt from 2 km away at night, red lava and rocks spewing down its side, swam in natural hotsprings and waterfalls, and seen wild monkeys so close up they tried to steal my food and water. I have drank with strangers in beachside bars, eaten fresh fish caught that day, and tested my knowledge of Spanish. I shared these adventures with 3 members of my family who came along and who in turn had the chance to challenge themselves and to come away with great life-long memories.

The years of our lives are like the leaves on a tree - we should not mourn for the few that have fallen when we could celebrate the many healthy ones that still remain. Thirty is much too young to mourn the loss of youth and the shortness of life. I am healthy, happy and would rather spend my time living my life than futilely mourning its mortality. Mortality is something that we cannot change, but what we can change is what we do with our time. Pack enough into your days and you will feel no need to regret the years behind you - rather you will treasure them.

I am sitting today in another airplane, much larger than the one yesterday, which will land in an hour and return me to my home city. In the past 24 hours I have crossed borders and I have also crossed what many view as a milestone in turning 30. Of these crossings, it is the first that means the most to me. I know that there will come a day when my life comes to an end and the time I have to see and experience the world runs out. I'll save the tears for that day, but for now - I have many more footprints left to make.

Learn more about this author, April Storme.
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