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I spent a lot of time mourning what is to be a teen and I occasionally do but I can say now at 23, Iām happy to have grown up in the time that I did. Itās more than enough to quell the insecurity of feeling old when I think about how good we had it as kids before the IPad and the depressive state of the world took over. I got to enjoy Disney channel at its peak and playing outside but also experience the come up technology and digital media at an age I could understand it and use it myself. One direction...So yeah I feel old but I think we had the last of what a real childhood should be like and that trumps everything
1d ago
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šµOur culture of youth obsessed social media can make it seem like people, particularly women, are old and decrepit and your life is over by 30. Im 26 and I feel like Iām just starting my life. I said the same thing five years ago and Iāll probably say it again. Aging under capitalism can feel like a doomsday clock, if you havenāt accomplished something by a certain age you lose the opportunity forever. But life goes on, there is no ānormalā age to do anything. itās never too late. Iām sure this all sounds pretty rich coming from a 26 year old lol. I think itās important to foster childlike curiosity and optimism while trying to avoid the alluring cynicism and arrogance that can come with adulthood. There are 20-year-olds that act 40 and 40-year-olds that act 20. No one knows what theyāre doing some people are just better at hiding it
1d ago
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šmaybe itās just that iām young enough that the novelty hasnāt worn off yet but i love becoming more of an adult every year.
as a teenager i was so terrified of not being one anymore but i love being in my twenties so far. so much of it is uncomfortable and thereās so much uncertainty and still! i wouldnāt go back ever ever ever.
being alive is weird and hard and probably always will be but being alive when you have no brain development or any concept of how to do ANYTHING is especially weird and hard. i enjoy being myself so much more now than i did when i was younger; i have more perspective to weather the uncertainty better, iām so much less insecure and preoccupied with how i come off to other people, and if i want to change my behavior or my life i have so much more freedom to do it! and iāll only get more conscious and more interesting as i get older! how fucking cool.
also as someone who really had to grow into my features itās a nice bonus that iāll probably only get hotter and have better skin over the next couple of decades. nice!
being alive is weird and hard and probably always will be but being alive when you have no brain development or any concept of how to do ANYTHING is especially weird and hard. i enjoy being myself so much more now than i did when i was younger; i have more perspective to weather the uncertainty better, iām so much less insecure and preoccupied with how i come off to other people, and if i want to change my behavior or my life i have so much more freedom to do it! and iāll only get more conscious and more interesting as i get older! how fucking cool.
also as someone who really had to grow into my features itās a nice bonus that iāll probably only get hotter and have better skin over the next couple of decades. nice!
Feb 13, 2025
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First of all, this is definitely normal and youāre absolutely not alone in it. But I think you may be ascribing self-actualization and self-assuredness to those a few years younger than you a little too hastily. People who had their middle-school years disrupted by the pandemic also dealt with/continue to deal with the effects of missing out on formative social and personal development, all the while with less developed brains! Not to mention the people youāre seeing are the ones out at shows, not the ones staying home with social anxiety or panic attacks. So although it may seem from your observation that people in this age range are doing just great, it sounds like youāre comparing yourself to a skewed group through an internalized lens of cultural bias towards youth ā quite a combo. And thatās just not being fair to yourself. The fact that you are getting back out there is big and needs to be acknowledged. Instead, youāre positively projecting and amplifying, i.e., seeing in them what you are having trouble finding in yourself. But it is in there ā the proof is that youāre showing up. Same thing for self-expression ā have you seen your own pfp? You seem cool af!
Because of the pandemic, youāve had a unique and unfortunate generational experience of this āarrested developmentā, but this also creates an opportunity to further the paradigm shift that royallmonarch focused on in his lovely essay. Societal expectations based around age are out; living your life on your own timeline is in.
Life happens; shit happens. But youāre getting through it and youāre doing great.
Youth/very young adults who make their youth their personality are actually boring people. Adults who pine about their younger days are also boring. Donāt be either! And if it makes you feel any better, I was at my peak ārecklessā right at your age; I got a ālateā start. You have so much time to keep doing fun stuff and most importantly, to figure out what you like and donāt like. Iām in my 30s and Iām going to a friendās rave tomorrow. Ok, itās a well-organized, well-curated event and not some shit-show in the bush, but still. Itās not over for me! Another night, Iāll stay home and pet my cats. Either way, Iām doing whatever the fuck I want. People take up painting or whatever in their 80s. The sooner you get on that vibe, the better.
Ok go have fun!
Jul 11, 2024
