I remember when my Mom turned 30. Kristen and I were out playing in the back yard and we saw all our aunts, uncles and cousins from the Plochberger side of the family driving up and quietly moving toward the house to surprise her. Infamously, Kristen, not understanding what was going on, rushed to head inside to tell Mom that everyone had showed up. I had to stop her before getting inside and, as she was 4 at the time, it wasn’t too hard for me to catch her. The Plochberger side of the family has traditionally been very good at donning black clothes, putting up signs saying “Over The Hill,” and making a remarkably big deal of family members turning 30, largely under my late Aunt Sara’s guidance.
Now, it’s 23 years later and it’s my turn. Now that I think about it, we haven’t had a 30th birthday in the family for quite awhile (Mom was the youngest in the family with brothers and sisters far into high school at the time she was born, so we had cousins turning 30 before I was even 10) and, as I live in St. Louis and they all live a few hours away, we won’t be celebrating like that. Heck, practically no one I know celebrates 30 anymore like that, as people live to be much older now and 30 is almost like any other birthday. Even 40, to some degree, is a non-issue.
It seems like, in the past 20 years, 30 became the new 50.
Makes me wonder, in another 20 years, if 50 will be the new 70…before I even get there…
In any case, it will be weird to say that I’m in my 30s, but in the end, I don’t see it as a huge shift. There was obviously a time that I did, but now that I’m here, it doesn’t really mean much. The only thing that sticks out in my mind is the fact that I’m now 30 and am still, technically, “in training” for my career, though this is commonplace in the field and to be expected. It’s also a bit different in that I remember my Mom’s 30th birthday (and so does Kristen), but Meg won’t remember mine. Again, a sign of the times when the average age of getting married and having kids is getting later and later.
Other than that, it’s just another year with two new digits to write, rather than just one. And that’s fine by me!
It is rather disappointing to have this day fall in the middle of the week, though, as it makes celebrating a bit more difficult. Brooke, Meg and I will go to the Bottleworks tonight, methinks, which is always a good time, so far as I’m concerned. This past weekend, my family came to town to help celebrate (that, and Father’s Day, of course), and that was a great time. In the end, it’s still more fun than last year, as we’re closer to friends and family here in St. Louis, and it’s a birthday that feels at least a little more meaningful than 29.
Regardless, I’m ready to hit this particular milestone. At the very least, I don’t have to say I’m in my 20s anymore and can try to act like an adult. 😉