Things that hit differently when you become an adult

If you are a dedicated reader of GWS, then chances are, you’re over 20, like me. Though this isn’t very relevant, I do believe that we can all agree that life just hits differently when you become an adult. And by an adult, I mean, you’ve left school, earn money, and are independent. Of course, everyone experiences life differently, but there are some things that we can all probably relate to.

Weekends are the thing we can’t live without

If you have ever worked with me, don’t tell the bosses this: I live for weekends! Don’t get me wrong, it’s great being employed… The money, exercising my brain, dressing up – all of that is awesome. But what I dislike about this ‘grown up’ life is that you have to do it to survive.

If you haven’t gotten your first job yet, this might not resonate as well. However, take it from me, work gets boring quickly. When you sign a contract, you sign your personal time away. You sign your freedom of speech away. You sign away forty hours a week, 880 hours a month, and 9,680 hours a year – excluding overtime! If you’re ‘lucky’ enough, you might get sick and spend a few days in bed. Heck, they might even cover two weeks of it! But that all lies on chance.

So yes, weekends. They are the blessing I never knew I needed. Even though I am a full-time mom on the weekends, at least I’m only working one job for two days out of the week!

Check out: When life gives you lemons

An early night is a blessing when you become an adult

In the words of the dominant generation Z, ‘what even is an early night’?!

Sounds dramatic, doesn’t it? It’s because as absurd as that is, I yearn for this mystic routine.

My daughter is always the most hyper at night, refuses to sleep through at 3 years old, and will wake up before the cock crows to make sure I get my morning kisses. *Slurps coffee*

If you’re heading into this parenting phase of your life, good luck. If you are working a full-time job, God be with you. And if you don’t have a trust fund begging to be spent, then may the forces be with you.

I am plane Jane doing all of the above – without the safety net of a trust fund. God forbid I need to sleep an extra hour to keep my sanity! What even is sleep?

You may also like: How to juggle blogging with a full-time job

A glass of wine

Before you click away and write me off as an alcoholic, hear me out. As teens or young adults, alcohol is all about adventure. Once you pass the phase of constantly needing to be drunk to be accepted into the popular crowd, the appreciation of the liquid gold kicks in.

*Cue in the story of when our dear friend Jesus turned water into wine.

Ok, maybe I do sound a bit like an addict, so let’s put the jokes to the side.

As an adult, I’ve learned how to drink and when not to. It’s such a different feeling having a carefully selected wine, paired with an exquisite meal as opposed to chugging down a $3 bottle. And did you know you’re not supposed to chug wine? You’re actually supposed to copy your granddad who swirled the drunken grape juice around his mouth, feeding it to his dentures. He wasn’t just being a weird old man, he was actually savoring the taste on the different parts of his tongue!

I probably sound like a freak right now, but as I said, adulting is mind-blowing.

A full day alone is a blessing when you become an adult

As I write this, it has been a long day of constant human interactions. To say that I am fatigued is beyond an understatement, and yet I am lying in the dark, on my phone… Against my better judgement too. All because I just want some time alone time.

As someone who works in sales, I’d like to think I have become a pro at seeming engaged in conversations and filling the awkward silence. But man, oh man, is it extremely tiring!

Once you’re an adult with your own family, little spawns, and full-time jobs, alone time becomes something you wish Santa would bring you. The irony is that there is no Santa, so you’ll never get it just by being good. Instead, you need to carve out some sleep time and allocate it to being alone, awake. What a concept right? Because if you just sleep the time away, how would you know what it felt like?!

Family is everything

Today I spoke to my little cousin who I’ve known for all of his life, and just 3 years short of mine. But he happens to not be so little anymore… As I chatted to his daughter – my niece – I couldn’t help but realize how much time has passed. How much time has gone by since we used to make pillow forts and climb trees? An eternity has passed since we used to tell each other secrets… And now we are in a phase where we can witness each other’s successes and speak to each other’s kids.

Soon after that, I spent an hour chatting to my brother about how we will strategise this life thing.

We take our families for granted when we are younger. In fact, I still find myself falling back into my old habits when they have been around too long. But it is moments like these that remind me just how not alone I am. We may be living our own lives, but family will always be just that… Family!

Related: My 5 step ‘role model’ parenting approach

A thousand other things

Of course, there are many more things that hit differently when we become adults. But as you may know by now, I can’t give you all the details in one go. Where’s the fun in that?

So you tell me; what are some things that hit differently when you became an adult?

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