50 Promises to Myself on My 50th Birthday

If you would have told me on my 30th birthday that 20 years later I would be thrilled to be turning 50, I wouldn’t have believed you because back then I wasn’t all that happy to be turning 30. And yet, here I am turning 50, feeling thrilled, excited, and incredibly blessed.

See back when I was turning 30, I was afraid of aging because I hadn’t accomplished anything that I felt I should have accomplished by that age. I was also afraid of aging because people would say “don’t ever get old” followed by something about how getting old is awful or sucks.

Now, that I’m 50, I realize that getting older does not at all suck. It’s actually wonderful. Sure, I don’t have the body of a 20, 30, or 40 year old, but that’s OK because I have this wonderful body that has been through all those ages with me and I am so incredibly grateful for it.

Here’s the deal, aging has a bad PR rep. It’s constantly being maligned and it’s ridiculous because getting older is a gift, not something to be afraid of or dread. I’m pissed that so many people talked ish about aging to me when I was younger and that I believed them. Now that I know better, I promise to not turn into one of those people. I promise to give aging the good PR it deserves because by doing so, I know I will help those who are younger than I am not fear the inevitable. I also know that by embracing the aging process publicly, I can help fight ageism because the one thing that does actually suck about aging is AGEISM.

And while I’m promising things, I would like to celebrate my 50th year by making 50 promises to myself.

50 Promises to Myself on My 50th Birthday

I promise to:

1. Continue learning and growing
2. Say “No” to things that don’t serve me
3. Say “Yes” to things that serve me, challenge me, and excite me
4. Be grateful every single day
5. Not do things based on age-appropriateness
6. Do things based on me-appropriateness
7. Exercise my body
8. Exercise my brain
9. Call people on their ish
10. Listen when I get called on my ish
11. Have friends of all ages
12. Encourage those who are younger than I am
13. Make tons of money
14. Challenge people’s biases
15. Follow my gut
16. Never be ashamed of my age
17. Lead with love
18. Wear whatever the heck I want
19. Cry in public without shame
20. Laugh in public without shame
21. Love wantonly
22. Tell people I love them
23. Sit with my feelings
24. Forgive myself over and over
25. Stand up for myself
26. Stand up for others
27. Floss daily
28. Stop saving things for special occasions
29. Speak kindly to myself
30. Make people laugh
31. Make people mad for good reason
32. Expect miracles
33. Acknowledge the miracles in my life
34. Ask for what I want
35. Accept compliments graciously
36. Learn from constructive criticism
37. Listen to those who have perspectives different than mine
38. Accept that sometimes I’m wrong
39. Apologize when an apology is in order
40. Explore opportunities that frighten me
41. Treasure my friends
42. Get rid of socks I never wear
43. Only buy wood furniture that is solid wood
44. Celebrate my children’s individuality
45. Continue taking care of my mental health
46. Encourage others to tend to their mental health
47. Be a life-long napper
48. Learn a new skill every once in a while
49. Be happy when others succeed
50. Share my successes with others

ALSO READ: Getting Older Does Not Suck

Thank you for reading! May every age be your best age.