Hii, thanks for reading! If you like being here, click the ❤️ button to send some love (and let me know I’m not writing into The Void). This is a community, so please share any thoughts in the comments, and if you’d like to contribute as a guest, I’d be thrilled to hear your ideas.
As I write this, I’m sitting in a cafe in Lisbon, drinking a flat white and being ~25 years old~!!! To me, one of the joys of adulthood is indulging in birthday cake and birthday coffee.
So far, a quarter century of life on earth has taught me many things, like conversational Spanish and how to apply mascara. It also has yet to teach me many things, like Morse code, or how to change a tire.
This post is dedicated to the former, but I think the unknown deserves a quick mention too. My math teacher once scrawled in our yearbook:
It is better to know some questions than all of the answers. - Mr. B
Eight years old, I scratched my head — who would ever not want all the answers?!
But now, 17 years later, I get it: there is magic in life’s mysteries. We engage with that magic through questions, like: Why are we here? What happens after? How can infinite universes possibly exist? What actually is oat milk?!! We might never know, but that’s kind of wonderful.
Engaging with mystery also means trying to fit some of the puzzle pieces together. In that spirit, here is most of everything I know about life so far, presented as 25 lessons I’ve learned in 25 years of living. ❤️
Life is short. Cut the bangs! Jump in the water! Tell them you love them!!!
Life is long. Floss! Wear sunscreen! Eat your veggies!
Listen to your body. It is much wiser than your mind.
Be kind to your body. Treat it as your home, because it is. (Also, do yourself a favor and invest in some supportive footwear!)
Spending time outside is always a good idea. Swim in the ocean, walk in the forest, sit in the sunshine. Notice how your mood changes.
Your brain is not always the best decision-making tool. Stop overthinking and instead go for a run, swim some laps, do some free-flow journaling — the answer will come when you relax your mind.
When in search of direction, you can place your trust in three things: your intuition, your curiosity, and synchronicities. Meaning: the answers are already available to you, within you — you just have to listen.
Be gentle with yourself. You are human, and you are going to make mistakes. When they happen, show yourself compassion and focus on the next right thing.
Your kindness radiates outwards. Spread your joy, it’s contagious! I love this quote from the Buddha:
“Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.”
Creativity isn’t a trait reserved for a small few; it’s a joyful practice available to all. If you’re afraid you’ve lost it, don’t worry, it’s still there — you just need to uncover it, dust it off, and use it again.
Friendship is a living, breathing thing. It’s also a precious gift. Take care of it and it will take care of you. (Just sending a text can go a long way.)
Friendships ebb and flow. Sometimes we outgrow each other; sometimes we’re just ebbing and flowing.
Your feelings are valid, but not obvious. Communicating how you feel to people you love is a way of showing them that love. On that note…
Closeness and intimacy require trust and vulnerability. Practice the courage to open yourself up to the people you love. They want to be let in! You do not have to go through hard things alone.
Embrace fear as a companion on all your most exciting adventures. Allow yourself to feel the fear and do it anyway! Hello, fear!
To invite magic into your life, step outside of your comfort zone. This is where growth, novelty, and pretty much all exciting things happen. On that note...
The future is not guaranteed. We could die at any moment!!! But not in a morbid way! This insight can help us live boldly and find more meaning, joy, and gratitude in each moment. Each day really is a gift.
Unsexy self care is usually the most important. Saving for retirement and having hard conversations are ways to care for future you. (But also, get the massage, because obviously you deserve it 💅)
The hard times really will always pass. Even if it feels like they won’t. Promise.
To avoid becoming embittered by the hard times, we can do our best at making meaning: writing, painting, creating community, and tending to our hearts however makes sense.
While we can’t always control what happens to us, we can control how we respond. This makes all the difference. And leads me to…
Each decision we make shapes our own unique life path, branching off from a bajillion other possibilities. There is no such thing as a perfect decision, but there is joy to be found in each path.
Practicing gratitude and being of service to others can lead you towards that joy. So can dessert, I think.
Lead with love. It will never ever steer you wrong. (And make sure to give that love abundantly, unconditionally, to yourself!)
The only two people you need to impress are your 5-year-old and 85-year-old self. What would they want for you? What decisions would make them proud? They’re cheering you on!
If you got this far, I love you! And if you didn’t, I love you too! My birthday wish is that you go call a friend, greet the day outside, give yourself some time to play and create, and revel in the miracle of another spin here on earth, getting older and — with luck — wiser.
If you would add any other pieces of advice to the list, I’d love to hear them. Share your wisdom in the comments!
Lots of love and happy Gemini season,
Eden
What else is on:
I just finished reading I’m Glad My Mom Died, Jennette McCurdy’s — of iCarly fame — new memoir. I inhaled it in 48 hours. Please go read it and then we can gush together about everything it made us think and feel!
Osgur and I are flying to London this weekend to see Beyoncé perform on her Renaissance world tour. Each night this week I’ve dreamt that I meet Beyoncé and we become best friends, naturally, sooo you could say I’m pretty excited. (!!!)
I’m moving into a new apartment today that I’ll be subletting for a few months in Lisbon. It is very charming. If you’re in the neighborhood this summer, please come say hi! ❤️
Happy birthday. I love you and miss you. You are wise WAY beyond your years. Your illustrations are priceless. As for the mystery of life, I wish weather forecasting was not so precise; when I was much younger, I relished the mystique of not knowing exactly what was coming sthinking maybe it was going to rain forever.
Happy Birthday, Eden. Love your blog (ok, I’m old) and especially your graphics. Please know that as you age, the number of questions grows, exponentially, as does the number of answers. But the question “Why” rarely gets a satisfactory answer.
Not the Void, but getting Closer all the Time.