keeping the tradition alive

On this, the day of my birth where I move from 32 years of life on this planet to 33, here are 33+1 (for good measure) things I’ve learned in the last year.

1) your “real” family is not necessarily the one you’re born into
2) Unconditional love is rare, but real
3) “wedding” is synonymous with stress and disaster and I will elope
4) You will get as much out of life as you are willing to invest in it
5) Open communication works better than arguing
6) some things that seem important at the time really don’t matter in the long run
7) today, every day, I am making memories that will last the rest of my life – so enjoy every moment
8) There is no cure for natural born stupidity, but there is one for willful ignorance
9) The world can be a scary place, but it is definitely a beautiful one
10) I’ve learned what it means to be happy
11) it is never too late to choose to change
12) Physical proximity is not a requirement to carry someone with you
13) little gestures mean more than big productions
14) when you open your mind, you become open to beautiful new possibilities
15) I am more socially aware than I once believed
16) There is no nickname so sweet as the person you love saying your name – or giving you theirs
17) when you live a grateful life, you live a full one
18) The more frustrated you get with waiting, the longer something will take
19) the will and ability to write is a gift that cannot be taken for granted, or it will go away
20) Sometimes the only thing required in order to make something possible is to have faith that it is
21) There is mystery and beauty in everything
22) empathy is a powerful tool to understanding
23) guilt is a tool that leads us to reconciliation, but is variant on perception and not deed.
24) at some point, kindness stops and being taken advantage of begins
25) Plans generally ensure things do not happen the way you intend them to
26) Things work out the way they’re meant to – not the way you mean them to – and it’s usually better that way
27) The first thing that has to change before anything else can is you
28) It is not selfish to feel – it is human
29) I am okay, exactly the way I am in any given moment
30) Awareness and activism begins with individuals who have the will to grow and spread like wildfire to others
31) In order to receive anything you have to have your hands and your mind open
32) The first step to equality is to realize that you yourself are worthy enough of recognition
33) True friends and true family reveal themselves not in times of joy, but in challenges and adversity

+1

34) if you want to effect change, be the change you wish to see first.