Tomorrow happens to be a very important day. 19 years ago on the 1st of October, a blessed child was born. And this child would grow up to be a smart, passionate, beautiful, God fearing girl who would make a difference in the world around her.
Yes guys; I'm talking about myself.
Now I don't know if I've fulfilled every adjective that I just mentioned but I know I'm getting there.
I've obviously grown from being the only loved daughter of my parents. Mostly because I ended up with two other sisters (aside my older brother) who caused that love to be divided among us. Don't get me wrong, even though those munchkins annoy me to no end, I love them to bits. Having sisters is a blessing others wish they had. Although I'm sure my older brother (being the only boy) surely felt overwhelmed by the amount of females he had to grow up with.
I have learnt a lot over the years. As they say, 'EXPERIENCE IS THE BEST TEACHER' and boy, have I been schooled throughout my life. So here are 19 things I want to share that hopefully helps someone out there. I've split this into two parts as 19 lessons are quite a lot.
So here goes.
1. Family is key
When I was younger, I remember always wanting to run away from home because I didn't like my family. I used to think my parents weren't as cool as my friends' parents, and that my siblings were the embodiment of all things irritating. I envied my friends who seemed to have 'better' parents or siblings (even better, no siblings at all!). But as I grew, I learnt to love my family members, with all their 'flaws'. Some of the flaws that I disliked were mostly misconceptions I made about my family. But as I grew closer and bonded more with them, I realised that, I wouldn't want to have any other family than the one I had. I'm content with the one I was born into and love each of my family members to bits.
Appreciate your family, no matter how annoying, embarrassing or bad they may be.
2. Parental Discipline is a form of love
Living in an African home, there obviously was a few spankings here and there when I was younger. But what surprisingly got to me more was being scolded or shouted at. The most annoying part was afterwards when my parents would act as if nothing had happened before and they'd sweetly speak to me minutes after disciplining me.
But now that I look back, I'm grateful for it all. It sounds crazy but I'm glad I was disciplined, even if it wasn't pleasant at the time. Who knows how I'd have turned out if my parents hadn't done that. Spare the rod and spoil the child (Proverbs 13:24).
But note that my parents disciplined me when I did wrong. Don't mistaken abuse for discipline; they are two majorly different things.
3. Bond with your siblings
This is a very flattering picture of my siblings and I. They're probably going to hound me for this later on, to be honest.
For those of you without siblings, enjoy your solitude! But for those of you who have grown up with these genetically connected beings, try to bond with them as early in life as you can. It's harder to do when you grow up, as you go through your mood swing filled teenage years.
I remember my sisters and I used to play games all the time when we were younger. But as I grew, I started wanting to do my own thing, and they'd complain that I was no fun anymore.
It's normal to want some 'me time', but don't neglect your siblings. Especially for your friends. They may not say it but they probably desperately want to spend as much time with you as they can before you eventually grow and go your separate ways.
Play games, watch movies together, talk about your day with them. Anything to keep that bond strong.
4. Life doesn't get easier as you grow up
I remember thinking as a child that, I wanted to grow up quickly because then I'd have money and freedom to do what I wanted. Fast forward to my current state in life, I'm not as financially stable as I'd hoped, and my life has become more stressful and full of responsibilities.
I honestly sometimes wish I was a child again. All the stress and challenges of being an adult was obviously not evident to my 8 year old self. Life gets harder as you grow, so make sure to make the most out of each stage you're currently in.
5. Your Christian life also doesn't get easier as you grow
Along with thinking my adult life would be sweet, spice and everything nice, younger me also thought that older me would be on fire for God when she grew up and that it would be easier to serve Him when I was an adult.
Wrong again.
My spiritual life is a tougher battle than ever before. Don't wait until you're older to serve God. Do it now! Don't wait until you're in a better condition or until you have more time to be able to live your life right for God. Time is precious and eternity is long. Make sure you know where you're spending it and start preparing to meet your God, for He is coming soon!
6. Don't envy others
I can't count how many times I've been jealous of others. We've all been there, even if we don't realise that we're doing it.
Wanting to have those amazing family vacations to Dubai that your friends were having, wanting the latest trends that your friends were flaunting, yearning for the popularity of others.
Remember that everything is not what it seems. You don't know the backstory to the things you see. You may end up wishing harm on yourself. Be content with what you have and in every situation you find yourself in. Better things are yet to come.
7. There's no such thing as perfect friendships
All the Disney movies and shows I had grown up watching, most likely influenced me in wanting to have the perfect friendships. Sleepovers, sharing secrets, doing everything together. Sleepovers were cancelled out for me though. I'm sure I'm not the only one with a mum who questions why you need to go to someone else's house to sleep when you have a perfectly good bed at home.
In reality, there's really no such thing as perfect friendships. We all have our differences and qualities; we shouldn't pick friends based on appearances or popularity. We can't also force people to be what we want them to be.
It's possible to find friendships in the weirdest of circumstances, so don't judge others before you get to know them. And remember, be the kind of friend that you'd want to have.
8. Change will happen
I tend to talk a lot about change. But that's because I've experienced it a lot. And what I've learnt from it is that, no matter how hard you try to hold on to the past, there's no way things will remain the same.
Letting go of something or someone can be tough, but sometimes. holding on makes things worse. We have to learn to let go and let God. Learn to move on because I promise you, what's in your future is much better than what's in your past, even if at the moment it doesn't seem like it.
9. Read, read and read
As a bookworm, I obviously love reading. I know there are people out there who hate reading; the smell of those fresh library book pages puts them off.
But reading is really good for you. Not only does it improve upon your literary skills, it helps build imagination and knowledge.
I recently heard a message concerning knowledge, and I learnt that knowledge is strength. The more you know, the stronger you are. You don't necessarily have to read books; you can go for your local newspaper, online articles or even E-books. Anything that will help broaden your mind and enlighten you.
Word of caution: Read something that will enlighten you. Don't read things that will corrupt your mindset.
That's all for Part 1 of my 19 life lessons. Stay tuned for Part 2. Feel free to comment your opinions below.
Stay blessed and stay a blessing.
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