22 Things That I Learned Before My 22nd Birthday
It’s strange and wonderful how certain songs freeze time. I still remember being thirteen, sitting on my best friend’s bedroom floor, doing fashion shows to Taylor Swift’s “22,” absolutely convinced that twenty-two was ancient. It sounded like the age of marriage, cubicles, and five-year plans.
This week, I turned twenty-two. It turns out Taylor was right. Twenty-two is not old. I did not wake up on January 11th with a fully formed identity, but I have started to solidify a list of things that actually work for my life. Over the past few years, certain truths about people, ambition, faith, and small habits have repeated themselves so many times, that I have stopped ignoring them.
Without further ado, here are 22 things I have learned (and unlearned) before my 22nd birthday:
The people make the place. Newport, New York, Europe, dorms, apartments. None of them feel like anything without the people who I love.
My parents are the reason why I am who I am. My mom is my soulmate. My dad is the man who taught me how to climb literal and figurative mountains. Everything I am came from them.
My siblings are my best friends. Having a brother an hour away for college is unbeatable. My sister is the joy of my life.
Ambition without tenderness turns into loneliness. I learned that being driven is beautiful, only if I stay gentle.
Quality time is the real currency of love. Not gifts. Not texts. Time.
Walking is the best time for prayer. Some of my biggest moments of clarity and thanksgiving have been when I spend time talking to and thanking God while walking through the streets of New York.
The subway is unbearable when you track every person, every stop, and every delay. When I relax into the ride and shut my brain off, it becomes magical.
Writing is how I survive myself in the chaos, the love, and the ache.
Legitimacy is produced by perception as much as by law.
My softness is not vulnerability, but my greatest strength.
Romanticizing life is the best way to make it feel easier.
There is no point to ever hold in a compliment.
Problems always feel smaller after discussing with your best friends.
Do more of the things that made you happy as a kid. They probably still do!
Buy the plane ticket.
The joy of the Lord is my strength.
Some of the best nights ever started with “I was just going to stay in, but….” The stories are always better than sleep.
The beach is where I remember who I have always been, but New York is where I remember who I can become.
Rejection is redirection. Every time the answer was “no,” it was because there was a far better “yes” waiting for me.
I do not have to earn rest. I can just be.
The sudden clarity of an instant connection is one of the rarest and most powerful sensations.
Reading the textbook actually works. The smartest person in the room is probably just well-read.
Xoxo,
Annie
