I am grateful

Day 20

Little reminders are coming at me all day today that the big day is here; EB keeps calling me "Ma'am" (so not funny), and I had to make that yearly trip to the Secretary of State to renew my registration. And I am actually at piece with turning 30. I am going to do it with grace. I have enjoyed spending 19 days reflecting on my strengths, weaknesses, likes, dislikes. I have found awareness within my busy days. I have had wonderful conversations with people based on my writing. I have readers in North America, Russia, Asia and Europe, which is absolutely incredible to me.

I got a birthday gift from my parents tonight..and what do you know, it is an e-reader, like I proclaimed last week I would never like. I was wrong. It is really cool. (Thanks D&G!) So on this last night, I will reflect for a moment on the momentum of life. There is a certain momentum to life, something that keeps going whether we like it to or not. Like waves rolling along a stretch of ocean, we can interrupt the wave and maybe send it in a different direction slightly, but it is going to keep moving forward no matter how hard we try. We will grow older. Things around us will change. We don't have much control over it. But we do have control over how we reside in the space of that momentum. So, going into my 30's with a ton of momentum at my back, I choose to be open-minded, graceful, accepting. I have long been accepting of others, and in my 30's, I will take some time to be more accepting of me. I will step into my new decade tomorrow with confidence and awareness of who I am. And I will remain open-minded to the possibilities that momentum brings. Even when that momentum brings me face to face with something I said I would hate without ever really trying, such as electronic books. I am open. Maybe I can embrace change that isn't my idea.

One last note. I am grateful. Gratefulness can bring happiness, so practice it everyday. Notice one thing each day you are happy to be a part of.  For me, this has happened 19 times, and will happen one more time tonight. And while I can not keep writing every single night, my love for the written (or typed) word will keep me writing here. So please stay tuned for more reflections as they strike me. Signing off.

About me:
1. I am a rightionist who is striving to wing it every once in a while.
2. I am inspired by others; I am on this earth to relate to others. I am a social worker.
3. I love stuff, until it turns to shit.
4. I am aware of extraordinary growth, even on ordinary days.
5. I embrace change, if it's my idea.
6. I am willing to commit to the smaller stuff; I will find strength in pain.
7. I have to find my own way. I have found my way to loving writing, and am on my way to loving myself.
8. I am a daughter, a girlfriend, a sister, a cousin and a best friend. I belong to a family.
9. My hope springs eternal.
10. I am able to realize when it's time to simplify.
11. I have talents; I am an academic, an artist, and many other things yet discovered.
12. I immerse myself in words; I am a connoisseur of reading, writing and speaking.
13. I am a control freak searching for calm waters.
14. I am accepting of my nerdiness.
15. I am eternally learning.
16. I can't do this alone.
17. I am human.
18. I am a product of thinking about my environment
19. I am a following leader. 
20. I am grateful, graceful. I am accepting of myself. I am 30.
J