A Few Life Times

I have often heard the saying "don't blink or you'll miss it," particularly from people with more life experience than me.

With my 30th birthday just a couple of months away, I am shocked at both how quickly it went by and how much I have lived in just 3 decades. In some senses, I feel as though I have lived a few lifetimes rather than just one, with the 4th lifetime currently underway.

Throughout my life, I have heard things like "you are so mature for your age," or after talking about the things I've experienced, people asking me "how old are you again?" and being shocked by my response. The most recent time was when my barber finally asked how old I was when I told him I had bought my first house recently. At this point, my barber has known me for a couple of years, and finally he said, "so you lived through your parents' divorce, the new family, then having a career in the Marines, a career as a technician, then a manager, then sales, then you got into medical equipment, then you started a podcast, and now you're a homeowner and you're not even 30? You have the life experience of someone in their 40s."

The funny thing is, that's not even the full story. That's just what we've talked about. That's when it finally dawned on me that maybe that's not as common as I imagined. Maybe most people's environments don't change as often as mine have. I had one of my Marine friends say, "every time we meet up, you're driving a different car, working at a different job, and living in a different place. You're constantly doing something. You're here, there, and everywhere in between."

I guess that's just it—that is how I have survived an unstable upbringing. Staying put for too long was dangerous. The upside is that pattern of behavior made me extremely capable and reliable. I naturally found myself in leadership roles early in life. The downside is my trust in others was virtually nonexistent. I learned that I could only rely on myself, and trusting others would only end in disappointment. I also surrounded myself with people who struggled to do the things I was good at, which meant I would feel needed, but at the same time, my needs would not be met.

It's something I still struggle with and am doing my best to be aware of when I spot it. That way, I can start taking small opportunities to ask for help. Nowadays, you'll see at least another person helping me work on some of the projects I have going on currently. It has been one of the biggest changes of my life.

If I knew I wasn't going to wake up tomorrow, I wouldn't be too disappointed. While life has chewed me up quite a bit, I find myself time and time again impressed by how far I keep making it. Listen to me, talking like it's almost over. I guess that's just the crazy part....I'm not even 30.