The only time one should look back is to see how far one’s come along. As I sit here in front of my computer on my 31st birthday overwhelmed by all the love friends and family members have shown, I can’t help but reflect upon my life grateful that I’ve made it this far. It hasn’t been an easy journey.
11,315 days, 271,580 hours, 16,294,824 minutes, 977,689,440 seconds… that’s 31 years’ worth of time in different measurements and EVERY second counts. It’s been one CRAZY roller coaster ride with highs and lows, however, I’ve survived! During single digit years, one learns society’s ways and adapts. It’s like the personality I had slowly began to hide behind the clothes and masks I learned where acceptable by social standards. Peer pressure and insecurities screamed the loudest during teen years which also happened to be some of my darkest times. I didn’t know who I was, and I found myself being the most vulnerable I had ever been. The twenties are where I found myself doing a lot of WILD, adventurous things; I was a risk-taker fearlessly learning and roaming through life. This is when I truly started to love and appreciate who I really was deep down. The masks started to come off and the true kid at heart started to blossom. I travelled around the world by myself, moved to NY without ever having stepped foot within the city’s perimeter, and fell in love. My first serious relationship ensued, and once that was over, I learned that I needed to love myself completely before I could ever be in another relationship. I began to nurture myself and do what made me feel happy. While I’m still in my early thirties, I’ve noticed this age differs in that I’m more career and financially focused, confident in my own skin, comfortable with the uniqueness I bring to this Earth, and still, fearless but in a much more responsible way. I’m wiser than I have ever been and am proud of the young man I am today. More so now than ever the world is smaller and after recently quitting my job, I see a sea of opportunities out in the world, and while I have no clue as to where the universe will take me, I do hope for something exciting, welcoming of who I am as a creative individual, and accepting of the greatness I bring while being appropriately recompensed for the quality I deliver. 31 years in the making and here I am… What happens next? I don’t know and while it is a little scary, it’s also VERY exciting. Needless to say, the journey continues. In a nutshell, this is me at 31.