Growing Up

On my way to the gym this morning, I was thinking philosophically.  I'm not certain of what exactly brought this on, maybe it was sleep deprivation.   Anyway, I'm thinking to myself - yikes!  I have a gym membership (THAT I AM USING!!!), an SUV, a house in the 'burbs, a lab mix and a husband.  When in the world did I turn into a grown up!?!?!?  I hate that word, grown up.  

Not that I want to fight the idea of growing up, I just think that its an interesting concept, partially, because its both a noun and a verb.  I am a grown up or I have grown up.  Or I will grow up.  Or I refuse to grow up. Grown up seems so straightforward.  Like you are or you're not, you will or you won't.  I'm the queen of gray areas, and I think that grown up seems to fall right into one of those lovely shades.

I for one, feel like I have grown up several times, yet I still have more growing up to do.  I hope that I'm never a grown up because that would imply that I'm done and if you know me, I'm never done because there is always more.

Growing up seems to evolve as you well, grow.  When you're little, growing up literally means getting bigger and older and being able to do and experience things you haven't done before. When the physical growth is complete, it lets you dedicate yourself to the mental growth. Mentally and physically, you go from childhood to adolescence to teenager to young adult to adult.  Once you reach the dreaded "adulthood" is when it seems that you're supposed to start acting like a grown up (whatever that means).  For me, I think that this was the time when the good times really started rolling and when the fun really began.  It helps that I now have a salary to play with and no curfew to worry about.  Now is the time to begin learning, visiting new places and experiencing new things. 

Its hard to avoid getting caught up in the responsibilities that pile on as you become a "grown up"; mortgages, car payments and trips to the grocery store and other necessary evils.  But part of the process seems to be managing these mundane tasks and responsibilities, balancing them and making sure that you don't lose yourself in overtime, credit cards, laundry or housework (ha ha ha).  Although, I'm not the same person that I was 10 years ago, when my parents dropped me off at Ohio State and said goodbye (at the time, I thought I was a grown up, but I was sorely mistaken), I think that its a good thing to see that girl and visit with her once in awhile, letting her get acquainted with who I've become and remembering that I've still got lots more growing up to do.