Turning 21

I recently had the pleasure of ushering in a new birthday. But this was no ordinary birthday- it was my 21st. The amazing 21st. Something about it seems mystical, for reasons not very obvious, 21 seems to be a magical year. One you don’t want to waste. One you want to prolong and live out to the very fullest. I mean, there must be a reason that person named their store ‘Forever 21’. However, after you take the time to wind down the hype, and give the situation the necessary unfiltered attention, you may find yourself at a rather disappointing conclusion. Twenty-one is no more special than thirteen. All it means is that you have successfully lived another 365 days (you champion, you), from the last time that we celebrated that exact same achievement. The true hype, the true thunder, the true ball of amazing that surrounds the big ‘21’- is you. ‘Life is what you make it,’ if you’ve ever heard that and agreed with it to any degree, then you can surely follow my argument of ‘Twenty-one is what you make it’. As is any and every year. It’s just up to each of us to take charge of our own lives and go for what we want. At this stage- this is what I’m attracting in my life: Freedom: To be myself, to learn, to grow, to make beautiful messes and maybe clean them up. To succeed. Life is about inventing ourselves, I think I so often I forget this. We each have the power to be whoever we want to be. I just want to find my own light, and live in it. Happiness: I want that inner-peace-kind-of-happiness, that isn’t affected by anything external like crappy Cape Town weather, a relationship status or running out of electricity in the middle of straightening my hair. I just want to be at peace with myself, with God, which where I am. In that way, every storm will be weathered easily, because I understand that it’s just temporary. Love: I think I’m at a point where I want messy, dirty, heart-wrenching and soul- electrifying love. Whose depth will outweigh the heights of my fear. Perhaps it’s being twenty-one. Perhaps my heart is just ready. Whatever it is…these are exciting and dangerous times. Love, Noni