I’m Soon Turning 27

I will be turning twenty-seven years old on 25th March 2024. The fact that I’m turning 27 has ‘disturbed’ me since December of last year. I really don’t know why yet. Thankfully, this has helped me to think more about my aging and development over the years. After dissecting all the key development stages of my life I have found much fulfillment and inspiration. I’m so happy about my achievements and, even more importantly, my failures.

There’s something about 27. But I don’t know what it is. At first, it felt like such a big number. I used to tell myself “Yo, I’m turning 27?!” This thought I often followed it with, “Nah, it ain’t that big of a number; I’m just overthinking it.” Then I agreed with myself that “It is what it is.”

New thoughts entered! At 27, have I achieved enough? Have I achieved what a 26-year-old is required to have achieved? I started thinking about some of my friends who are between 27 – 30 years old. Am I really working hard enough? Or later on, will I regret it when I see all my age mates are successful while I’m a pauper?

I somehow managed to get over all these thoughts. Learned knowledge played a vital role in my overcoming these thoughts. I remember nuggets of wisdom such as “Do not compare yourself to others,” “Be proud of who you are becoming,” “Problems will always come your way,” et cetera. Of course, the famous “adulting” memes as well.

Those are at the surface level. At a deeper level, I have been wrestling with thoughts about my career path, relationships, deaths, and spirituality.

I enjoyed exploring different career fields in my early and mid-twenties, but I must settle for one now. At least I think so. But which one?

Damn, the death of my grandma a month ago. That shook me to the core. I’m not even able to speak about that yet. It opened so many questions in my head. Actually, by the time of writing this (18 March 2024), since the burial on 2 March, it’s only the past two days that I have finally managed to sleep without being haunted by dreams of the death of someone I know. Scary.

Ok, I’m turning 27. Starting a family is not far away. At least I think so. As a result, should I be in a stable relationship now? I still struggle to wrap my mind around starting a family someday. What I know for sure is that I want my kids to experience what I missed – growing up with their mother and father surrounded by lots of love and care, which leads to the question about my preparedness.

I have found out that a stable relationship requires a lot of maturity, sacrifice, and mutual understanding. Definitely, there’s a lot for me to do here. In fact, my current read, alongside Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s Weep Not, Child, is David Brooks’ Road to Character.

Oh, my spiritual life. I grew up as a Catholic but I can’t say I’m a Catholic anymore. I don’t know if I’m religious anymore. Part of me strongly tells me to return to my roots.

I have also been thinking deeply about my network of friends. To be honest, the death of my grandma only fueled it; it is something that I have been thinking about for quite some time now. I gained two key insights with my grandma’s death on this particular issue: a) some of those whom I considered close friends might be holding a different viewpoint and b) grandma’s strong connections with relatives and community members proved invaluable during the farewell event. The smooth flow of things was facilitated by almost everyone’s willingness to contribute in various ways.

This experience taught me the significance of maintaining harmonious relationships with those in my surroundings. It also taught me the importance of cultivating a strong network of ‘real’ friends, which I’m now actively pursuing.

Anyway, I’m soon turning 27. As such, I want to celebrate that milestone. Literally, for the first time, I will be celebrating my birthday. Perhaps I will gather with my close friends at the house to share stories and play board games. Perhaps I will be at the house alone contemplating, meditating, and drafting plans.

For those who want to make the day extra special to me, gift me a book or book store voucher (here’s my book suggestion list), write me a poem, sing me a song, or buy me a souvenir that you think I will keep for the next 50 years.

I’m pumped to be turning 27! I have never been so happy turning a year older.