*Disclaimer: I wrote this post on my birthday, which was over 2 months ago, and somehow I never posted it. Which is a lesson in itself, that life will always get in the way of even the best and simplest of plans! Anyway, I’m considering this an ‘organization fail’. Just pretend you’re reading this post in early April. Think of it as time traveling. Now, onto the post!*
You would think that after 27 years of constant practicing, I would have this whole life thing figured out, right?
But I’m not even close. Which is weird because at the young age of 15 I thought I had it figured out, then I thought I had life figured out at 21, and now at 27 I realize how little I know about how to really live my own life.
Because figuring out life is hard. Very hard. Damn near impossible, really.
But this is what (I think) I’ve learned so far:
- I can function on 5-6 hours of sleep, but it isn’t pretty. I probably need far closer to 7-8 hours of sleep per night, especially if I work out.
- Sweating is a great thing. I always, always, always feel better after working out in the morning. However, morning Lisa likes to trick regular Lisa into waking up, hitting snooze, and sleeping through gym time.
- It’s amazing what you can get in life simply by asking for it.
- Doing something just for the sake of an awesome story has rarely let me down, and I’ve had some of my best adventures that way.
- Not everyone is meant to be in my life forever. Sometimes it’s better to focus on people who are important to me right now than those who were important to me 10 years ago. (This has been one of the hardest concepts for me to grasp and accept, but I’m really finally getting it.)
- Fruits and veggies should probably be eaten more than once a week. I’m convinced I’d be 5’6 right now (instead of my puny 5’2″) if I had eaten a more nutritious diet when I was little. There is absolutely no evidence to back this up, but I fully anticipate being able to use my shortness as an argument to convince my (potential) future children to eat their greens.
- Quality is important. Clothes, furniture, shoes… anything that is being bought to last longer than 2 years should not be bought as cheaply as possible if it compromises the quality of the item.
- There are 24 hours a day. I need to sleep 7 of those hours (at least), which leaves me with 17 hours per day to really live. I’ve learned that I should not spend all of those hours running around like a crazy person trying to accomplish 28747493 things. I need time to relax, dammit! However, even though I know I shouldn’t do this does not mean I’ll stop trying anyway.
- If I wear a white shirt while eating Thai food, I will always drop something on it. Always. Never fails. Note to self: wear dark colors when eating Thai food!
- People will forgive me quicker than I will forgive myself, which means I should probably be a little less harsh on myself when I make mistakes.
- Almonds are a delicious snack. Especially roasted almonds.
- (Sometimes) I regret spending money on shoes, but I rarely regret spending money on travel.
- I am one of those people who will stop like a deer in headlights when a car is turning left and I’m in the crosswalk. I am most definitely going to get hit one of these days if my first reaction when faced with danger isn’t to move out of the way of an oncoming vehicle!
- Who I am at 27 is not who I was at 22. It’s amazing how much time can change a person and their views/opinions/interests/etc! I think it’s super important to not only recognize these changes within myself, but to also make judgments about others from where they are at this second, and not based on who they were years and years ago.
This year my birthday was near Easter, so my mom made me this crazy looking birthday cake.
I just love life lessons (both mine and those shared by others!) because it really shows growth (or maybe the lack thereof), don’t you think?
My lessons this year are completely different from what I would have said even 5 years ago. Hence the reason I love recording them.
Please, share some of your lessons or wisdom with me!
