A few thoughts

[Tenacity]

When I was a kid I thought adults had it all figured out. They seemed to ooze authority, confidence, and knowledge, and I thought when I grew up I would feel the same way. When I turned 18 I discovered that I felt the same fears, anxieties, and doubts that I had always felt. It took quite a while into adulthood before I realized that I could choose for myself how I was going to feel, and how my life would progress through the world. That idea seems so simple when written in text, but I think it is the primary struggle that everyone wrestles with in life.

It is easy to go through life blaming everyone and everything else for what is wrong with your life. But the truth is, if you choose to live life as a mouse, then you will always be afraid of cats. You know who is never afraid of cats? Tigers.

In 2009 I embarked on the pursuit of being admitted to graduate school to eventually earn a PhD in US History. Tomorrow I leave the city I have always lived in to travel cross country to begin that degree. This has been a long journey just to reach this point, and it will be another 6 years to complete the PhD, but there is just no substitute to the pursuit of your dreams. Fears, doubts, anxieties, and even despair have been my constant companions my whole life, but what I have experienced also tells me that they are no match for perseverance and hope.

So, may you become more dangerous than what you fear.
May you become stronger than the obstacles in your path.
May you rise above what seeks to drag you down.
May you meet every challenge head on, look it in the eye, and dare it to not get out of your way.
And may you never quit.

I never felt at any point that I suddenly transitioned from a child/adolescent to an adult. In fact, all through my 20's and into my early 30's I felt like I was still a kid at times. My body hurts, and I feel old, but my personality and everything hasnt really changed much.

There was one point though, about 15 months ago now, when I finally felt like I had made that definitive step into adulthood, and that was with the birth of my daughter. Nothing snaps you out of the immaturity and care-free attitude of your youth like suddenly having another living being you've had a part in creating that relies on you for everything it needs to survive. It's definitely different than having a pet, I've had pets all my life and always been responsible for them and it just doesnt compare to having a child.

They said moving out of the house when you turn 18 makes you feel like an adult. It didnt.
They said being able to drink at 21 makes you feel like an adult. Definitely didnt.
They said getting married makes you feel like an adult. That didnt either.

Having a kid though, that does the trick.

BTW:

You know who is never afraid of cats? Tigers.

Honey badgers. Honey badger dont care.

---