Thanks to the power of social media, the whole world knows it was my birthday yesterday!  And yes, it was the big 3-0.

First of all, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for all the wishes, messages, emails, etc!  Each and every one put a huge smile on my face.  Big hugs to all of you!!

So, for those of you who are also approaching this age, don’t be nervous, scared, etc.  I am still a firm believer that age is just a number, and that as long as you don’t act your age, it’s all good!  In fact, I was told that by many older and wiser friends and relatives.

Case in point…

Vishnu stuck the balloon into my ponytail for the picture.  I’m lucky I married a guy that also follows the age is just a number philosophy!

However, if you’re like me in that your mind often wanders and thinks (a little too) deeply about things, you may see an increase in frequency of these said thoughts.  Especially around your 30th birthday.

Unfortunately, my thoughts aren’t all that unique or profound.  I didn’t come up with any major insights or groundbreaking theories about turning 30.  Instead, my thoughts were all about the things I want to take forward into this new decade and also the things I want to leave behind.

I thought about how I want to take more ownership for the way things turn out in my life.  It’s so easy to blame circumstance or other people when things don’t turn out they way you want them to, but in reality, we create our own destinies with the choices we make.  And as adults, we need to own the fact that we do have a say.  This doesn’t shield us from any of the “bad” things that sometimes happen, but it does open up a new path for the future.  No more of the victim mentality.

I also thought about about how taking ownership for my own life doesn’t mean controlling the outcome.  In my twenties, I had a plan.  And no one, and I mean no one, could come between me and my plan.  Or so I thought.  I’ve learned that there’s a plan and then there’s what actually happens.  Sometimes the two match up and sometimes unforeseen things happen…and that’s ok.  One of my (older and wiser) coworkers summed it up perfectly when she said that our twenties are all about control and wanting everything to go a certain way, our thirties are about learning how to let go of that control, and after that it’s about coming to terms with the fact that life happens to us.  Looking back at some of my personal challenges and triumphs, I realize how true that really is.  Control equals tunnel vision.  And when it’s all about your plan, you become blind to the joy, the lessons, and the opportunities that exist all around you.

And finally, I  thought about how I want to be more authentic – with others and myself.  In my personal opinion, I’ve changed a lot over the past 10-15 years.  I’ve gone from a full-time people pleaser to a part-time one.  Now it’s time to quit and be more real.  And this doesn’t mean not caring, not loving, etc.  It means caring so much (about others and yourself) that you want people to experience and get to know you for you.  It means loving so much that you want to be honest and share what’s on your mind.  It means inviting others to do the same and showing them that it’s not so bad.

That pretty much sums up my major thoughts over the past week or so.  Maybe they were a little deeper than I thought!

Thanks again for all the birthday love!  And speaking of birthdays, I totally forgot to mention that My Inner Shakti turned three on January 21st!  So thank you for all the blog love over the past few years as well!  I hope you know how much each and every one of you means to me!  Here’s to another year of love, adventure, lessons, happiness…and writing!