There are now more people in line behind me than ever before. I think there are still plenty of people ahead of me in line, of course, but there are a bunch more behind me these days. And the people ahead of me aren’t all as active as they used to be. Stands to reason, right? That’s just part of the natural order of things.
I’m cool with that. What has made me sort of stop and stand up a little straighter is this idea that maybe the people in line behind me aren’t just standing in line, chatting away unconsciously but maybe they are watching me. After all, I used to watch the people in line ahead of me when I was new to the line. I went from adolescent indifference and obliviousness to early-adulthood observation. At some point in your early 20’s, when you realize that you are not bulletproof and that you might not actually know everything there is to know, you start looking at those who are older than your for some guidance. After all, there is wisdom in experience, if nothing else. So, you start watching those with experience.
At 40, my place in line and my perspective of my place is subtly shifting. I have experience. I have expertise. I have come a long way, done some cool stuff in my life. I’ve also done some really dumb stuff. I’ve had some frightening moments. I’m proud of some things and ashamed of some others. It’s not that I didn’t have similar lists when I was 20. The difference is that, at 40, the overall data set of experience is a lot bigger. And it’s richer. A lot richer.
The line at 40 might not be any different, but it sure looks different from where I am standing. Not sure what to do with that. What I do know is that it has opened up a whole bunch of possibilities in my mind…
Illuminate Possibilities 