twenty-nine

twenty NINE

TWENTY- nine

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20-9

Nine and Twenty

Behold, the magical age to which I recently ascended.

“29”

Go ahead. Ponder upon its meaning, its greatness. Wonder out loud why 29 is spoken of with such reverence.

And then answer the following question:

What IS it that makes 29 so darn magical?

It’s a number first and foremost...obviously.

It could also be a distance, a measurement of time, a temperature, the number of steps to your mailbox, a clothing size, the number of times I listened to "Mom" in one hour today, the number of mismatched socks in a drawer, the date one first discovered his/her love affair with stamp collecting....it could be ANYTHING, really.

Well, no matter WHAT it stands for, there is something quite special about it because people lie all the time, calming they’re 29 when it’s painfully obvious they fondly kissed their twenties goodbye a decade or so ago.

I, for one, am grateful for my twenties but will be equally grateful for my looming thirties.

I have my reasons.

And what are those reasons?

Well...................

I was what you might call a late bloomer.

Don’t believe me? Go ahead and look closely at this picture.

Yes, that is really me at age 15.
(I'll wait while you stop laughing and wipe the tears from your eyes..................)

The crazy thing is, I looked like this and

PEOPLE STILL TALKED TO ME! (Small Gasp!)

I STILL HAD FRIENDS! (Little bit larger Gasp!)

I WAS NOT BANISHED TO A REMOTE TOWER! (Slight fainting sensation...)

I WAS NOT VIOLENTLY CAST INTO A MOLDY DUNGEON SOMEWHERE TO AWAIT A MIRACULOUS TRANSFORMATION!
(Largest of the Gasps! and the distinct feeling of hyperventilation...)

Ahem....back to the quest for 29's magic powers...

After studying this picture for a fraction of a nanosecond,

I know the power that 29 holds. I know the #1 reason it's so magical.

For me, the magic lies in knowing I have distanced myself fourteen years from my fifteen year old "state of being" and all that included. But mostly the way I looked in that awful picture.

And when I turn 30, it will be FIFTEEN years' distance. Talk about your magic.

In the meantime, I will watch with aging eyes the marvelous varieties of good things that happen to all in their 29th year.

Welcome, welcome, 29!