9. A Celebration of Life
Today I turn 29. 28 years full of life, joys, laughter, tears, singing, dancing, pain, friendship, love, growth, understanding, patience. It truly is a blink of an eye. One minute it was running around at the beach, splashing and laughing, eating s'mores, building pyramids with high school friends. The next it was stealing my baby brother's milk bottle, playing pretend teacher, and having recess. The other was finding a whole lot of love from those around me even though my life couldn't be far from perfect with my temp contract ending, my grandma passing, seeing the grief of my family, and how intergenerational trauma tears them apart. You think you experienced life, and yet again, life shakes it up. Takes a hold of your heart. Pushes and pulls you to new heights. Forces you to confront fears and learn compassion. At some point, you feel your embarrassment and cry anyway. You feel awkward to hug, but you pull yourself into your grandpa, so he knows he's not alone. You...