Here’s to 23 and some advice to younger me

As an adolescent, I remember thinking that people who were 21 were so old.

In my mind, I thought you are already eligible for a driver’s license, you have already graduated high school, you can get married, you can even buy alcohol, so what is left to look forward too?

Well, now that I am two years past my ‘prime,’ I realize that there is a lot left to look forward too after turning 21!

As I write this on my 23rd birthday, here are 10 things I wish I could tell my younger self to look forward to:

1. Your first car – Your first car will not be the top of the line, newest model, but it will get you from point A to point B. It won’t quit after your first, second, or even your third fender-bender. Give it a name and cherish it because you will be best buddies for at least 200,000 more miles.

2. College – For the first time, you will experience true freedom and independence. It will allow you to escape the labels you accumulated in high school and give you the opportunity to become who you want to be.

3. Study Abroad – Get out of Kentucky. Even if it is just for a couple of months, leave and explore because the world is so much larger than the 120 counties you are accustomed to.

4. Internships – At first, you will grimace at the prospects of having to work over the summers or extra during the school year on top of the other jobs you are doing, but you will have some of the best co-workers imaginable and have more amazing experiences than you can imagine. P.S. it might even landed you a full-time position after college.

5. Your first paycheck – I am not talking about your first job right out of high school paycheck. I am talking about the first paycheck you get from your career. That paycheck is a small sign that you made it. It means that you are living out one of your dreams.

6. Moving back home – At first, it will seem like you are regressing rather than progressing, but soon you actually start to appreciate it. It means that you can save money for graduate school, that first house you have been dreaming about for years and most importantly, it means that every day, you get to spend time with your family.

7. Weekend trips – Week long vacations are great. Multi-week long vacations are even better. But weekend trips, they are the best. Those spontaneous two- or three-day trips you take with your family or friends are the trips that you will remember for years to come. They will be filled with laughter and adventure.

8. Family game nights – Family game nights will get better as you get older. As a child, you don’t realize how much your parents hold back when playing card games because they are trying to let you win. As adults, they have no qualms about throwing a draw four followed by multiple draw

twos, a skip, and then another draw four before hollering UNO! at the top of their lungs before you even had the chance to play your first card.

9. Family reunions – While this one is more morbid, go to the family reunions and make sure to give everyone a hug before you leave. Too many times, you will receive a call saying someone has passed long before the next reunion happens.

10. The future – It is unknown, but that is what makes it great! You get to write the story, so just like your future graduation cap will say, “History will be kind to her, for she intends to write it.” Go write one heck of a story.