14 November 2022.
Over the course of the last year, blogs have been far and few. And that hits hard as I scroll down for some inspiration, realising that a whole year has passed by in a blur of just 2 blogs…
Has my writing frequency gone down so much or has the year rushed past so fast?
Just a blog ago, I was writing about stepping into the third decade, and here I am – already sitting back and wondering how to sum up this first of the third!
To be honest, just seeing November come up on the calendar is enough to get excitement coursing through my veins. I eagerly look forward to this day, and have been – ever since I remember. Would this excitement ever fade? I doubt. Will I ever truly ‘grow up’? I hope not!
The flutter within, the small smile that creeps on my lips, the ‘feeling special’ emotion that electrifies the atmosphere for 24 hours, and yet the absolute beauty in simplicity that builds up my day – makes me love my birthday, year after year. No matter how good or bad the days building up to this one day might be, it is those sheer 24 hours that recharge me in a way nothing has been able to, till date.
While cutting a delicious chocolate cake at my workplace, a question comes up – ‘Where do you see yourself in the next 10 years?’ “Hopefully right here!” pat comes my reply, but not before getting the thoughts whirring in my mind. Another question pops up – “What kind of a person would you like to be, over the course of the next year?” I smile, getting back to the cake – but wondering how I would answer that question, were I to.
Where do I see myself in the next 10 years?
A decade ago, I was in the UK – just about getting my feet wet with my Masters’ degree. Would I ever have imagined myself to be where I am at the moment, 10 years ago? I highly doubt. Did I not have ambitions back then? And the fact that I still cannot imagine myself 10 years hence; does that indicate that I still am not ambitious?
I think about it seriously, many hours after the question posed itself in front of me. But as I enjoy the last few minutes of my birthday, I recap to the day it was. And I realise those are my exact ambitions – where and what I hope to be doing in the next 10 years :
- To be amidst family, sharing the highs and lows of our lives
- To feel indulged by a niece who cannot control her excitement to hand over a gift she chose for me
- To bask in the unconditional love of a nephew whose eyes light up upon seeing me (or sometimes, just because of the food I hold in my hand!)
- To have friends with whom and at whose, I can always feel home at!
- To have ‘young’ friends recommend their favourite books to me, making sure I am equally excited about the plot (and the series that follows!)
- To relax on Sunday afternoons with friends who’ve seen me grow from my teenage years into adulthood
- To have the clock strike 12 and a phone call come through, without fail – a childhood birthday tradition that has stood the test of time
- To have friends who ‘make time’ for me even when they’d much rather crash in their beds after tiring days
- To have that special person swallow his disinterest of socialising just for me, because it is MY day
- To have a work environment and people who make me want to wake up every single day and go to work!
- To spend perfect evenings with good food, deep conversations, loads of laughter and the oldest of friends – all rolled into one!
- To have the ability to capture the day (and so many other moments) through words
- To have thirty wonderful years, and be glad for the next ‘one’!
What kind of a person would I like to be, over the course of the next year?
The kind who remains grounded, grateful and glad that she was born and raised to be a person for whom no dream is impossible, and no sky is too high!
Here’s to the adventure called the “next 365 days…”
