“This is what the brink of 35 looks like.
It looks like looking into a dirty mirror, taking a silent selfie I’ll surely put a filter on later, flashing a goofy-*ss grin, feeling proud I ran two miles, mowed the lawn, and got a shower in while the kids are at grandma’s.
Hoping, wishing, finger-crossing the hubs will finish up work with enough time to take me on a date.
One where we will, without a doubt, talk about the kids, curse the pandemic, complain about our adult responsibilities, overeat, and drink a few fancy drinks.
Then we remember, alas, it’s only Tuesday, and though the kiddies have a day off of school tomorrow, it’s back to work, the grind, and the monotony a typical Monday through Friday delivers.
So this is what the brink of 35 looks like.
A d*mn imperfect woman, using run-on sentences like it’s her job.
A d*mn imperfect woman, with a nose that looks very large in some pictures, getting ‘done up’ for what could possibly be a night out, or, more likely, what could turn out to be just a night in, sans kids.
You know, I’ll be 35 in a couple of months, and, honestly, at times, I still feel like the young twenty-something-year-old I once was.
But here’s the thing…Younger me, she wouldn’t take a makeup-less pic and share it with you.
She wouldn’t divulge she’s a messy Marvin who doesn’t regularly clean her mirrors.
She wouldn’t be caught dead making such a silly looking smirk, or dear God, let you see it.
She wouldn’t have run anywhere except to the mall, and she sure as heck wouldn’t make conversation about lawn mowing.
But this older, more seasoned, sometimes grumpier, but almost always faith-filled and grateful me, she likes this whole aging thing.
This whole changing thing.
This whole life-living thing, where everyday experiences, interactions and conversations—with both big people and very precious little people—transform you.
My adoring husband and three endearing, joy-filled and purpose-giving children, they have made me who I am today.
And do you know who that is?
A beautiful, yet flawed, amazing woman who isn’t afraid to look at herself in the mirror and be silly or feel proud.
A woman who gives so much of herself to her children, she doesn’t feel guilt (okay, maybe some) when she takes time for herself or her and the hubs.
A woman who very well may end up heading out for a lovely evening or kicking it in her pajamas on her couch, and who couldn’t give a real hoot either way.
This is what the brink of 35 looks like, and I don’t mind the view.”
This story was submitted to Love What Matters by Nicole Merritt of Jthreenme. You can follow her on Facebook, her website, or podcast. Submit your own story here. Be sure to subscribe to our free email newsletter for our best stories, and YouTube for our best videos.
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