37 Things I Have Learned in 37 Years

Friends, I wrote this for Chesapeake Family Life and it was published online for them on the 2nd of March. But I really wanted this one to be on The Naked Momma site too. I hope you like it. I'm so beyond fascinated by which numbers resonate with which people in different stages of life. I hope you are so so well. Miss you. And I adore you.

xoxo Katie

We get so caught in the weight of the everyday, and we wait for big milestone days to make a change and break the cycle.

We wait for the weekend to have fun, for New Years to make a resolution, for our 30th/40th/50th birthdays to make bolder life choices. I don’t want to wait for my life to begin anymore. We can break the cycle, beginning now, even when we have so much more to learn.

I am 37 years old and here are 37 things that I know right now:

1. Life is tough. You are tougher.
   
2. Being brave and kind cost nothing and can shape everything.
   
3. It is never too late.
   
4. Hearing a child laugh is the greatest sound in the world.
   
5. Chase light. Chase dreams. Chasing people is not what you were born to do.
   
6. There is nothing that you cannot accomplish when you put on lip gloss, mascara and a great pair of shoes.
   
7. Settling does not look good on anyone.
   
8. It is okay to fake it until you make it.
   
9. It is okay to be in love with a well-placed swear word.
   
10. Some people will drill holes in your life boat. Stop making room for them to stay on board.
    
11. Girlfriends are the best therapy.
    
12. Learn the power of the word no.
    
13. Having to mourn someone who is still alive will be one of the most difficult things that you have to do in this life.
    
14. Your gut does not lie. Listen to it.
    
15. Linger longer with people who see your worth. The believers and the joy seekers. The people who want to laugh with you at your kitchen table and do not care how dirty the floor is beneath them.
    
16. When in doubt, just keep dancing.
    
17. Not everyone deserves your time and energy and to be told your best stories. Not everyone deserves a place at your tea party.
    
18.  The world does not benefit from you living a life of fear.
    
19. Put on your own oxygen mask first.
    
20. The body is the house to the soul. Nourish it, protect it, celebrate it.
    
21. Stop apologizing for the things that you have had no control over.
    
22. Confidence is sexy. Smart wit is sexier.
    
23. You can change your life at any given moment. You have options even when you think that you don’t. If you are miserable, that is all the justification that you need to write a new chapter. Stop waiting for external bruises and the perfect season of your life to align to make a change. If you wait, it may never happen. And you will wake up and be 20 years older and every bit as unhappy. Trust yourself. Trust your strength. If people can’t understand that, please see No.10.
    
24. Perfection and comparison are overrated, exhausting and are the thieves of joy.
    
25. Dress up for yourself. Dress up because it is Tuesday. Show up for your life. Dress for it, even when you don’t want to. Especially when you don’t want to. There is a time for pajamas of course. But the daylight needs your tigress ways.
    
26. You have enough time for what matters.
    
27. If someone is clawing at the door to get out of your house, do not turn the deadbolt to keep them in. Do not contain them. Turn the handle, love. You have the courage to set them and yourself free.
    
28. Embrace your mistakes. They make you beautiful, strong and deliciously human.
    
29. Tell the people you love that you love them. Write it down. Repeat.
    
30.  Travel. Read more books. Keep your eyes and soul open. Take some risks even if you are a grown up, especially if you are a grown up. You have a pulse, live accordingly.
    
31. Whisper. Scream. Roar. Trust your magnificent voice.
    
32. Let go of the things not meant for you. This is not limited to, but does include guilt, dear mommas.
    
33. Allow yourself three times to complain about something. After that, you either need to make a change or you need to stop complaining. It is as simple and as complicated as that.
    
34. Breathe. Unplug. Smile. Be caught being happy, present and awake.
    
35. Surround yourself with those who care less about how they show their lives on social media and more about how they show up in their real lives.
    
36. Your children need to see you rise. Everyday. You are not their puppet. You are not their best friend. Teach respect and kindness and how to make their own peanut butter and jelly. Show them how to rise even on the dark days. And they will too.
    
37. You get one life. That is it. Make yourself proud.

Bonus #38: wine, caffeine and Instagram filters are priceless.