40-Something or Bust!

On the eve of my 41st, instead of planning a birthday celebration, I had a hot date with Loreal. Always faithful and within budget, she helped me rid myself of pesky gray; an aging occurrence that I am still fighting, but one of the very few things I refuse to accept…just yet. 

This week I jumped the 40 year old hurdle to “40-something”. Many people freak over the thought of 40, much less 40-something. I have to say, I love where I am at this point in my life. I am finally able to appreciate imperfections rather than linger on striving for a perfection that doesn’t exist. 40-something is the age of awareness and acceptance.

- 40-something means finally seeing life’s challenges for what they are worth. As difficult and painful as they may be, they continue to define me…in a good way.

- 40-something means knowing my self-worth and finally having the courage to put a value on my feelings and less value on those who are toxic.

- 40-something means biting my tongue for the sake of others, choosing battles and going to blows as a last resort only.

- 40-something means recognizing that terrible decision making, bad character judgment, mistakes in life, and family dysfunction exist in everyone’s lives at some level. 

- 40-something means a heightened awareness of those who are the first to judge and the last to look in the mirror.

- 40-something means understanding the impact of forgiveness of others and the life-change that occurs by forgiving oneself. 

- 40-something means no longer being a victim of circumstance, but rather a survivor with accountability. 

- 40-something means letting go of the past and the "what ifs" of life and embracing the now.

- 40-something means holding my phone further from my face so I can actually make out words in a text. Those same words force a squint, and, most often, a smile from ear to ear in the middle of a very stressful day.

- 40-something means accepting I can't make everyone happy. I only have control over one person's happiness. My own.

- 40-something means looking at life on a lighter note and loving the view.

www.lifecorked.com

- 40-something means that my outfit choice is now weighed more on a scale of comfort, less on a scale of “hip”. It doesn’t mean I’m letting myself go. It means I’m giving myself a break from heels that hurt my feet, unnecessarily showing of thy cleavage, and continuously yanking on a skirt that is just long enough to pass company dress code, but just short enough to be inappropriate for a 40 something. I still look professional AND I don’t have to soak my achy feet at night. Bonus.

- 40-something means waking up to more crow’s feet, and laugh lines. I don’t do needles, therefore I will, happily, do wrinkles. I embrace my flaws and celebrate my strengths.

- 40 something means the transitioning of perspective: from cutting your bangs too short being the end of the world/never leaving the house again to cutting your bangs too short as just being one sucky thing of many that happened to you on that particular day.

- 40-something means finding myself watching my kids and their friends with envy...but more so relief. "Ahh, to be that young and carefree again." -  "Thank the good lord above I don't have to go through that again"

- 40-something means telling the same story twice to the same friend without realizing it, but hoping it was just as funny the second time around.

- 40-something means gauging my decision making on how many glasses of wine I will allow myself on a random weeknight due to the fact that I have to be a functioning, employed human being the next morning.

- 40-something means walking upstairs to grab something, only to completely forget what that something was and laughing at myself through the frustration. Multiple times a week.

- 40-something means that if you read this and relate, you have reached acceptance status in life. If you read this and fear the 4^th decade, greet the inevitable with open arms. If you read this and think I’ve completely lost my marbles, then you’re probably right.

And I’m good with that.

After all, 40-something is the new 20-something….

But better.