Comments on: Turning 30: A Welcome Prospect?

By: sam

sam — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 05:14:00 +0000

I turned 30…3 days ago. I squalled the whole day. I had no idea I was going to do this. I wasn’t really dreading the day or anything. I wasn’t expecting anything other than a few bad jokes and a day of getting older. But that isn’t what happened. I went through every event that has happened in my life over the last 15 years. All the mistakes I’ve made, people I missed, choices I should’ve done wiser…and I felt like a total screw up! I realized I had wasted 15 years of my life. The bad part is…I was trying all those years to do the best and right things for my life…I just kept choosing the wrong thing. You know..the path not taken…but how do you know which path is right until you walk it. I also found out a few months ago I have this horrible back injury that ppl twice my age usually have..and all these things I can never do again. I am engaged to a 25 year old…have been for a while…age never bothered me before but now I look at how different our ages make us. I can tell myself all day long it is just a number…but that isn’t true…it’s memories…choices….ppl are gone…changes happening faster in all areas…BUT…when I read the message Chris said on Sept 26th…I realize I have to start today…TODAY! I put off so many things that I always said I could do later (stop smoking, eat better, exercise more, do more things for me) because right now seemed like forever…but it’s not..and not promised. So..the only advice I have is…DON’T look at the number …but do know the days are passing…and today is the only day you have to start, end, change, choose..make what you want to happen happen

By: Towanda

Towanda — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 03:04:20 +0000

For most people twenty-something living is full of life lessons. And being a thirtysomething allows you to apply these lessons and move your life into the next level. If you look at it that way, everyone should be okay with turning 30.

By: Amy

Amy — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 01:48:49 +0000

My 30s have definitely had rough patches, but overall they’ve been better than my 20s. I’ve acquired two very important skills since I turned 30: I don’t care very much what other people think about me, and I am comfortable saying no to people. (The 2 things are probably related!) I wish I had learned them in my 20s.

By: Sudeshna

Sudeshna — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 22:35:20 +0000

Hi,

I’m 27 too and have all the thoughts about turning 30 that you seem to be having. All of a sudden the big three doesn’t seem so distant. I’m sure I’ll be able to accept it once it actually happens but can’t say I’m looking forward to it!

‘Am working on this project that I thought might interest you and your readers. It’s about image and identity issues of women in their 20′s and 30′s.

This project, called Imagining Ourselves, is a multi-lingual, global online exhibit featuring the artwork, film and writings of women from all over the world.

Do visit us when you can at http://www.imow.org and join in the conversation or email me if you would like to get involved in any other way.

Thanks,
Sudeshna

By: Another Chris

Another Chris — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 22:11:37 +0000

There are many theories on this (reacting to reaching one of ‘The Big’ birthdays), and I think the only one that is worth rejecting is the one where a person just gives up…thinking that if you’re 30..or 40..or whatever milestone-year a person may have reached, that it’s too late…too late to go back to school…or meet that perfect guy/girl…or get out of the terrible relationship you’re in, or take that trip around the world…too late to make a change in your Life. I soo agree with Swissfondue, who mentioned that people who were 100 would give anything to be 70. So, whatever age you are now, do not give up…love every single second of every day—I promise you, there will come a day many years from now that you will wish that you were the age you are today…and you could bend over to pick up the paper without pain…and the friend/Mother/lover/pet that you soo cherish, and so miss since they have been gone, were still there with you, so you could hug them and tell them you love them. Enjoy the day!! (And hug someone you love, soon!! :) )

By: jen

jen — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 16:16:24 +0000

i agree that dreading 30 is much worse than actually being 30. so far i’ve loved being in my thirties. now at 36 i’m starting to dread 40! but i’m hoping that when i actually get to 40 i’ll love it as much or more than my thirties.

By: Aunt Cathy

Aunt Cathy — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 06:49:42 +0000

I am 44.6 yrs of age. WOW!!! I do not act my age, nor feel what I perceive a 44+ yr old should feel like. I think of myself as a 30 something yr old.
When I turned 30, I embraced it with knowing what I lived thru in my twenties and relished what was before me in my 30′s. Age does NOT guarantee LOVE, CHILDREN, or HAPPINESS!!! Only you can make those happen!!! (well, for me 2 out of 3 of those…for I have never been able to have Children…) But age is what you make of it for the most part.
I wouldn’t want to step back in time to be in my twenties. And most of you will realize…in time…with maturity…that vanity is only skin deep. Health and happiness is where it’s at!!!!

By: Dana

Dana — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 00:12:39 +0000

I’ve heard both sides of this topic from people I know. Those who are dreading turning 30 and those who are loving the fact that they will be entering their 30s. I’m only 27, but if I was turning 30 tomorrow, I would not be happy. I would feel disapointed that I hadn’t yet accomplished certain things. (such as marriage, children, and finishing college) I still have about 2 1/2 years though and a lot can happen in that time. I know now that when I turn 30 I will be a nurse, but can’t say whether I will meet my life partner and fulfill my need to get married and have children.

By: sassymonkey

sassymonkey — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 23:51:37 +0000

I’m thinking that after reading earlier this summer that the average life expectancy for women in Zambia has been reduced to 37 because of the AIDS epidemic I’m going to love every single damn one of my years.

By: Swissfondue

Swissfondue — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 17:28:12 +0000

Ask any one hundred year old: they wish they were only still 70.
Kind of puts things in perspective