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35 years behind me and the rest of my life ahead!

When Did I Get So Old? (Candace)

I’m on a plane on my way to Boston now. I just had a great couple of days of meetings with my old friends from Dealstruck to better understand what caused them to close their doors and what could have been done differently. I met the board of my new company for the first time and introduced them to the team and concept I intend to run with beginning December 1st (depending upon what they think of it). We secured our lease at our first choice apartment in the Arts District of downtown LA (and for $500 less per month, yay!). And I drove all over God’s creation. I’m exhausted, and its only Wednesday!

But now I’m relaxing enflight on my way to Andrew so we can celebrate my birthday on Saturday together. I’ve been on so many airplanes this year that I almost feel more at home in the air than on the ground. And in the flurry of activity over the past few weeks, today seems to be the first day that I have time to sit and reflect on my 35th year of life.

What a year…

I’m reminded of all of life’s experiences that have brought me this far. School and practicing law, starting businesses and getting sued, moving cross country and becoming a hippie, getting married and traveling the world. What an amazing set of blessings these experiences have been for me. I’m so grateful for each and every one of them, for the good and particularly for the bad.

I often feel like I’m far younger than my peers when I look around. I don’t usually feel old. I haven’t had children yet and I can still party with the best of them. But today, as I’m reflecting on my life, I can feel the sunset of 35 years. I’ve learned so many amazing lessons along my path, not the least of which has been to love myself and then, in turn, those in the universe around me.

I’ve made the big mistakes that taught me the lessons that guide my life now. I’ve learned to live an honest life. To treat my peers with respect. To wear my heart on my sleeve. To love completely, even if the love isn’t returned.

I’ve learned what I want from myself and from my environment. And I’ve learned to only compromise when my values aren’t at stake. It has made the hard decisions so much easier, and made life so much more fun to live.

And I’ve learned that I still have so much to learn. I still need to learn how to be a parent. How to be a wife. How to be a leader and a boss. How to take myself less seriously.

Walking into my 36th year of life, I am full of hope and excitement for what is to come. But I also sit in humble appreciation of what has made me this woman I adore.