Since coming to terms with my 41 year old self and the drama that ensued I’m absolutely and utterly amazed in the breadth of other things I now take time to think about. Among them a list of practical things I’d have liked to know many, many years ago. What can you add to the list?
Thing 1: Drama: Don’t let drama rule your life. If you are feeling like there’s an issue / terrible story / negative moment hanging on every corner of your life and there’s only one common element (you) stop and have a good rethink. Drama is entertaining on TV but only necessary in little doses in the real world.
Thing 2: Gossip: de-licious as it may be it really serves no purpose other than to make others feel like crap (and by proxy you too). There are so many other things to ponder than ‘he said’, ‘she said’ and everything they did.
Thing 3: Expectations: Get them right out there in the open and the sooner the better. There is nothing worse (well, there is but we aren’t talking about those things right now so just go with it) than discovering wwwwwaaaaayyyy down the track that you accidentally didn’t reach up to something that was expected – even if it was obvious to everyone except you.
Thing 4: Pegs: Save up for some decent ones or be prepared to constantly sneer at the shards of plastic that litter your lawn and contemptuously poke into your fingers every time you reach into the peg bin which you are pleased you were grown up enough to get but will never remember to take out of the weather.
Thing 5: Schools: It’s not the end of the world if your kid needs to change school. Different school philosophies, learning programs and potential peer groups suit different kids. YOU KNOW when your kid is happy, when they are happy they learn.
Thing 6: Trampolines: You are never too old to stand on a trampoline. You are probably not too old to gently bounce on a trampoline. But you can be too old for backflips. Yes, you can be. Especially after a few glasses of nostalgia.
Thing 7: Opinions: Yep, they truly are like butt holes, everyone has one. And like the latter they are better not exposed in public.
Thing 8: Time: Like a good stew some things just need time to brew. There aren’t always shortcuts or hacks, you just need to wait it out. Think – relationships, trust, a garden, new skills, building a community, nurturing a belief system – they all need time.
Thing 9: Plastic food containers: Choose one system and stick with it. You DO NOT need every single bit of plastic that goes on special in a supermarket, finds a way into your house or looks like a convenient idea.
Thing 10: Storage containers: No, owning more storage tubs does not make you more organised. You may actually drown in the clutter of your storage containers. Don’t buy more, chuck out some of your crap.
Thing 11: Being lazy on purpose: Sometimes it’s OK to be lazy. Some you just need to ‘check out’ and rest. You don’t need to wait for a rainy day to watch a movie, or a late night to have a sleep in. Sometimes you just need to give yourself some time to indulge in LAZY.
I could keep going but would love to hear yours too. Go on, you know you want to.
