Oh. My. Goodness.
Today I turned 25, which means that I’m about 9,125 days old – and I’m deeply grateful for every single of them, both bad and good. Here are 25 things that I’ve learned so far:

[Note: These ‘lessons’ are not organised by importance and I’ve left them without further clarification as I find some of them to be fairly open-ended; with a pinch of ambiguousness so that everyone can relate or adopt them in their own way.]
- Health is wealth.
- Take time to respond, don’t react immediately.
- Say “no” more often.
- It’s never too late to change your mind.
- Get comfortable with being uncomfortable.
- Carry a book at all times. [Thanks, mom. Thanks, Kindle.]
- If you worry, you suffer twice.
- It’s OK not to be OK.
- If you don’t ask, the answer is always no.
- Never stop learning.
- Perfection is overrated. Strive for a better version of yourself.
- Create. Even if it stinks. Keep creating.
- Friends over boyfriends. Always.
- Count your blessings. Once you start, you’ll keep finding more.
- Tell people you love them. Praise them, thank them, compliment them.
- Remember to crack a joke even at the darkest times. Make it a slightly inappropriate one.
- The cure for anything is salty water: sweat, tears or the sea.
- Red wine works equally well, though.
- Know how to spend time on your own but do not forget how much you enjoy others’ company. [This goes out to all fellow introverts.]
- Network in unconventional ways.
- Be more generous.
- Life without challenges would be boring. Say “challenge accepted” as often as you can.
- Bad dates make hilarious stories.
- The only way out is through.
- When you are content with yourself, everyone will respect you.
Older (and maybe wiser),
F.
Very good! Keep up the good work!