Life at 24: Beautifully Executed & Wrapped

Honestly say, I only have one wish every year.

Maytrinanda
5 min readMay 14, 2022

First, I want to shoot my internet friend Hannan Zubair to have been consistently writing a thoughtfully beautiful lesson at every stage of life at 23, 24, 25, 26, and 27:

and how it inspires me to leave a note too. *PS: I will stop taking pictures with peace signs. 😎

At 23 I wish that by 24 I would be a humble person and become that person. In the meantime, I also have learned that life is beautiful and to be good people is my focus.

Here was what I had seen in everybody around me at the age 24th.

Let’s start with how 24th is sunshine and rainbows: either by the 24th people around me getting married, having a relationship, getting their undergraduate degree, continuing for a graduate degree, having a stable income, getting their dream job, or starting a small business.

Let’s see how is also stormy and rainy: On the 24th, I also had seen my friends struggle to make the end meets, wondering around what they want to do with their life, ended a toxic relationship, haven’t finished their undergraduate degree, are still financed by their parents, just started their ever first job, for the first time knowing what they like to do, or discover what it is that they truly want.

Congratulations to every one of you.

Meanwhile, my life at 24th is wonderfully basic: I got my first stable job after I graduate and can buy my own smartphone.

Here’s what I am proud of.

  1. I have a keener sense of knowing myself well.
  2. For the first time, I am not afraid to have wants and am motivated to get them.
  3. Have been learning to be the bigger person and not afraid to set expectations.
  4. Make better relationships with my parents.
  5. From the very core of my cells: I am enough and thankful for what I have.
  6. Who I am now and who I am becoming.

Here’s lesson learned.

#1 Who you are yesterday are people you valid to compete.

You are becoming better than yesterday is the real progress you can observe. You know exactly what and where area did you fail therefore needs to be improved. Than try to compete with your friends that you didn’t even know where is the line your friends start.

#2 Let it be when things not working as you plan it.

Every time things go wrong, I got relief when I remember what Murphy’s law says:

Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.

I am not expecting the unexpected. Just so by knowing what is the worst will happen from the beginning saves me from stress. Especially when the unexpected happens at the least ideal time. What options do I have rather than just to let it be?

#3 Change is inevitable, we should welcome change.

How times have been telling me that change is scary. By the closest, you are afraid when your partner changes. You ignore the mere fact that we grow either for better or for worse. Instead, we should count on change: see it as new chances and new opportunities.

Change is scary because I was afraid of the unknown. I am so used to the old that the new people and new places are not what makes me comfortable. After all, we are likely capable to adapt. So choose the things that scared you the most.

#4 Have nothing to lose approach.

Kidding. I really don’t even have a single penny to lose. I extract this lesson from what I had learned from my 23rd because it is still relevant. Ever since I never second guess my act. Because I know the worst thing will happen is either rejection or a yes for my advantage. At the very least, you learn not to take it seriously or you get new normal to take rejection as a lesson. So why not try it as much as you can? Also, that’s fun!

#5 Use self-deprecation when you get humiliated.

Take it nice when somebody trying to provoke. I remember when I was talking with people on the internet from Ometv. So I am talking with a bunch of male groups, then one said, “Will you give me a b**w job if I give you dollars?” while laughing.

At first, I replied politely, “No.”

He said, “Why?”

Here is the fun part, I said, “Because your thing is too small.”

Then his group of friends laughed so hard meanwhile he feels humiliated by my response and forced his friend to turn ometv off.

If I take myself seriously, the winner is him. Since that day, I try to use humor as my response because when I take myself seriously, it is often I heated up the situations. That is not what I want by letting them control how I will respond. Don’t take yourself seriously but yes be serious.

#6 Don’t cry, seriously.

Another thing that I realized is wherever I cry no one is care and no one will get benefited from me crying. I honestly don’t know what to do when I see my friends crying in front of me, I just give them a hug or offer help. So why people will care when I don’t like it?

But people start to care and celebrate me when I am happy. So instead of crying out of blue for getting emotional wherever it happens, I stop and think, if I love myself truly, will I get myself crying for the trivial problems? The answer is always no. Even if it is for comfort crying. I’d rather jump into watching anime or make myself sleep. Because after crying myself to sleep, in the morning I will always start my day wrong and it affects the whole day.

#7 Letting myself get hurt.

I let myself hurt twice. No, I will let myself hurts hundreds of times if it is the number to make me understand others for my stubbornness. I want to easily relate even if I have never been in their shoes so I know their feelings. Doesn’t make as sense as it sounds because how I will exactly know what they feel?

But at least I also even getting understand myself better because of the hurt. I am not trying to hide my feelings anymore because I realized I block others to understand me even before they want to start to understand me by hiding my feelings. So to be vulnerable is my option to be successfully related to others.

After all, we are human. It’s not possible to never hurt people. We relate by hurting people and being hurt.

I want to hear from you as well Evon, Norilyn, and Isabel Noronha of how and what lessons did you learn before you turning your last birthday!

Thank you in advance ❤

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