5 Lessons @ 24

I celebrated my birthday this weekend and as we all know this is one of the perfect times to sit down and do some inward reflection. The past year, for me, has been full of critical landmarks to say the least and while this list of 5 things I learnt this year is very specific to me I am hoping that to you, the reader, there will be one or two things to extrapolate and apply in your own life. 

1. 

Curve balls

Remember when there was a time you had it all planned out? You were going to go to Uni, get a great job, travel the world, get married, have cute babies and live happily ever after.... 

I've learnt that things don't always work out the way we plan BUT It's OKAY! At 23 I had my son and that wasn't exactly part of the plan but you know what sometimes that's what happens. Despite the "Uh Oh" moment my son is the light of my world and nothing has ever made me happier. The curve balls are often uexpected but It's OKAY because things always work out in the end. 

2.

Do what makes you Happy, Do what gives you inner Peace. 

Since 23 my ears have entered into the habit of hearing and seeing what other people are saying and doing...NOT HELPFUL! I've learnt that our paths are different and what's critical is to DO YOU! Stay in your lane. Make your own decisions and at the end of the day what really matters is that your heart is at peace with your life choices. 

3.

Be Brave enough to Try. 

At 23 I had the nerve to attempt what a lot of people told me not to. I was told I was being crazy and overambitious. At the time I had no idea how I was going to do it but all I knew was that I had to. I registered for my Masters while 4 months pregnant and wrote my exams while Malachi was just 10 weeks old. I had a lot to prove! I had a full time job at the time. With study sessions going on all throughout the night and sometimes with him on one leg and a book on the other, I Passed!! I did a lot better that what I or anyone else expected and the one thing I am grateful for is that I was brave or rather crazy enough to TRY! 

4.

The value of True Friends.

This is one lesson that literally brings me to tears every time I think about it. This past year I have seen firsthand exactly what the bible means when it talks about how "A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated but two can stand back to back and conquer." Never take for granted the relationships you have with your friends. For me, those are the people who literally got me out of bed when I didn't have the energy or motivation, they drove me to work and back when I felt like nothing mattered, they brought me chompkins and samoosas when the cravings and morning sickness struck, they drove me halfway across the country to solve my nyayas and spoke for me when tears choked up my voice and I couldn't speak.  It was my friends who held my hand at my very first scan and my friends who sat with me in doctors waiting rooms for hours on end at no pay and with no questions asked. There is a group of people who were on call 24/7 and were willing to put their lives on hold whenever I called in my time of need. I honestly don't know where I'd be  without my friends, To them I am forever indebted. 

5. 

Enjoy Life! 

Live in the moment. Worry less about tomorrow and embrace today. Most times the things we lose sleep over don't really matter..long term. Forgive often and freely. Don't hold onto misery and things that bring you down. Life is short and no moment is ever like the previous one. Celebrate today, tomorrow is not guaranteed! Be weird be crazy, be you! 

LIVE, laugh, love, learn! My son taught me most of that and he's not even talking yet. He wakes up with a smile on his face every single day. He is unforgiving about his screams and he doesn't care who is watching. If he falls, the sooner you pick him up the sooner it's forgotten and he's back to smiling again. In 7 months he has gone from a mere promise in my belly to a little boy who is extremely active and wont let anything pass him by without picking it up and putting it in his mouth. In just 7 months! 

Here's to 24!!!!

xoxo

Chido Dziva Chikwari
12/09/2015

May you live all the days of your life. - Jonathan Swift