October 08, 2019

50 Life Lessons



On Saturday I celebrated a significant birthday. Birthdays often bring a time of reflection into my life. I have thought a lot about how content I am and the reason is the life lessons I have learned through life experience. I posed the age-old question to myself: What words of wisdom would this 50-year old me share with a much younger me? The much younger me would likely not have listened, but I digress.

 1. Life is short.

 2. Spend time with your parents. When they are gone, they are gone.

 3. Travel. The world will enrich your life and broaden your views.

 4. Children want your time, love, attention, and acceptance more than any material you can offer.

 5. Use moisturizer.

 6. Laugh more.

 7. Have lunch with your friends. The laundry will be there when you return home.

 8. Get over it. If you need to move on – do it. Lingering is a painful waste of time.

 9. Even if it is expected, the loss of a parent is life-changing. The loss will become a demarcation line.  

10. Don’t focus on the things you do not like about another person. The small habits you dislike are not worth trying to change.

11. Get a dog much sooner. There is no love more unconditional.

12. Find a career you love. Waking up eager to go to work is more important than accumulating wealth.

13. Anger isn’t really anger. Find out what the real feeling is about.

14. Feel your feelings,  no matter how difficult, or how uncomfortable others are with their own feelings.

15. Surrounding yourself with positive and supportive people is a game changer.

16. Take care of your health. You only get one body.

17. Don’t be so hard on yourself. No one is perfect and few people expect you to be.

18. Stress can kill you.

19. Don’t play into chaos. There are very few real emergencies in life.

20. Having a child will change your life and it will be worth every moment.

21. Be present in the moment. When the moment is over you can never have it back.

22. Tell people how much they mean to you while you have the chance.

23. High school is but a brief moment in time. While you are there, it may feel like nothing will ever be as important, but that is untrue. Life after high school will be amazing.   

24. Don’t burn bridges unless you are completely finished. Some bridges need to be blown to smithereens.

25. Big decisions do not have to be made immediately.

26. Worry serves no positive purpose.

27. It is okay if do not please everyone. Make decisions you can live with.

28. Work is important, but don’t give so much energy to your work that you only have leftovers for the people you love.

29. Slow down.

30. Say no to things that do not fulfill you.

31. Everything will be okay.

32. Stop waiting for someday.

33. What others think of you does not matter. Live with integrity. Resting without regret is more important than how others feel about the way you live your life.  

34. Send handwritten cards.

35. Do more of what you love.

36. Laugh a lot.

37. Seek to understand. Everyone is different. All beliefs have merit.

38. Drink more water.

39. Every person you meet has a story.

40. Shame is unnecessary and only holds you back.

41. All your feelings are valid.

41. You do not know everything. Even when you are well-informed, you can still learn. Stay teachable.

42. You have one life. Make sure each day is spent working toward your ultimate desires.

43. You cannot change things that have already happened. Regret is pointless.  

44. You will not change another person. Stop trying. Change your expectations, accept it, or leave.

45.  Alcohol does not solve problems.

46. Spend time improving things you can change and less time upset about the things you cannot.

47. Blood does not mandate loyalty. You are not obligated to endure toxicity.  

48. There are four times a day you can easily make a positive impact on the people in your home. 
  • Saying good morning.
  • Saying good night.
  • Saying goodbye each time they leave.
  • Saying hello each time they come home. 
49. Say I love you.

50. Garden. Putting your hands into the earth will ground you.


50 is going to be amazing. 



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