"We are turning 30 this year, what are we gonna do?", a text message with a panicky underlying tone read on my phone from my best friend.
The dreaded age was finally knocking on my door too. Either I was going to embrace it, or deny its arrival by a grand distraction. I thought long and hard, and I said "I am going to take an improv class." What a grandiose attempt at fighting my new age that will only last a year.
I couldn't have picked a better out-of-character resolution for my midlife crisis: an engineer, who just earned highest educational degree possible after 23 years of being a student, decides to take an acting class. Good pick, G!
Of course, I was not going to stop there. I had to make a list of things I should do at age 30. I wrote a couple of to-do items, then paused to think "Why does age 30 have to be treated so differently?" After all, my body did not feel different, thankfully. In fact, I was stronger and healthier than ever. I like the confident and strong woman I turned into.
I realized that the negative messages about age 30 do not come from within my body, but from Western culture and its extended legs and arms, the media. Most of us would remember at least one episode from a popular American TV show, e.g., Friends and How I met your mother, where age 30 is a big deal, and not in a positive way, right?
I stopped making a list. After all, my goals for this year are not so different than the last years. I reframed my thinking: I am going to take an improv class not because of a midlife crisis, but because the growth happens the most when you are out of your comfort zone.
Cheers,
Gokce
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