40 for 40

I make these lists year by year of the lessons I’ve learned and the truths that I’ve found. I make them in order to track my age and forge an alliance with myself. This little annual inventory is taken from my blog, Dearbird at 38. Looking back at it now, it rings true for 40 too.

1. There is always a bird singing somewhere. Always.
2. Creativity takes courage. No additional skills are required.
3. Pandora never had a box. She had a jar.
4. Interrogate your ego often. It should never be bigger than your dreams.
5. Tuesdays and Thursdays are the worst traffic days.
6. BBC Radio 4 Podcasts are best played on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
7. There is always a way to give thanks and something/someone to be grateful for.
8. Cynicism is lazy.
9. Love Yourself and the universe will follow suit.
10. Defiance Disorder: it’s a thing, look it up.
11. Some people write to remember, I write to understand.
12. My Orion is a Lady.
13. Screw shame and the guilt it rode in on.
14. The sea is always right.
15. If you need an illustrated font to remind you to ‘Be Kind’ you are in big trouble.
16. Trust Yourself, it’s all true.
17. Shame’s trusted companion will always be regret. They come and go together. Be prepared.
18. Re-read the words that changed you. Know who you are.
19. There are no straight lines in nature. The concept is manmade just like perfection.
20. We really are the stuff of stars.
21. John and Abigail Adams had a remarkable and profound relationship.
22. Trust your gut. Intuition only speaks when it has something to say.
23. Don’t cling to a mistake just because you spent a lot of time making it. Forgive.
24. I am an apt pupil, at ease in solitude. I am not a social creature but I do love people and that’s OKAY. (This one took a long time to figure out)
25. Patience is Paramount.
26. Be a detective. If something thrills your soul, dig in deep. Find out everything you can. Curiosity is its own reward.
27. 38 years in and I am still astonished by the everyday assumptions we all make. Don’t assume anything about anyone ever. When people speak to you, listen completely, don’t let a preconception do the talking. The story, integrity, and beauty of a person will speak in the details.
28. Shyness and insecurity, while all well and good, are not the same as quiet and contemplative.
29. Take in the sunrise when you can.
30. Write it all down, draw it all out. Legacy and expression are not reserved for an idol class. Everyone should write a memoir as far as I’m concerned.
31. The sounds of a tapping keystroke, rushing water, and my daughter singing will always center me. Listen to your day.
32. Cater to your imagination. Give it a safe space to grow up and run around in. Let it do the building.
33. Everyone has his or her own personal battles. Anatidaephobia: A person suffering from this condition feels that somewhere in the world, a duck or a goose is watching him/her (not attacking or touching, simply watching the individual).
34. Fear mongers in the dark, flock to the light.
35. Look up, look up, look up, the sky is waiting for you.
36. Embrace change, it is a reliable constant. Make use of it.
37. Confront the Bear.
38. When you give, give freely.
39. As above so below, we learn as we grow.
40. The living plant can give life or take it away, the dried herb can save it.

Note: My notes are personal truths. A collection of the reminders I write to myself and my Bird.