Looking back

Some of you may have heard rumors about my turning 17 this week. At least, that is what people keep telling me. Who knows? Little birdies soar in on my virtual windowsill and chirp merrily about how I am getting old. Very nice little birdies, but somewhat confused. I am getting older, but I have a long time left before "old." /As a dear friend of mine said, 17 is the best year, because it falls in between the infamous Sweet 16 and the terrifying 18 of "adulthood", so the pressure's off :)
Sounds great to me! But, I doubt adulthood will come on the eve of my 18th, seeing as, year to year, its in between that counts, not the pinpointed "growth" days.

PUH-LEASE! Does that look like an adult-like, mature person? (No, those glasses aren't mine... I was playing with them, trying to look old. It backfired on me...) Have I made my point?

I have often assured my loved ones that I will try not to sprint into the world of adulthood, with voting privileges (that's one of the few privileges I see of turning 18, but I'm still not that interested, "Sadly enough," some comment, and, reaching the legal age to drink and drive here in Spain--OK, technically, it is "drink" comma, "drive", but let's just say that some punctuation gets forgotten in the Spanish joie de vivre), on purpose necessarily, I made a deal with them that they can tell me when they think I've reached that transition. Well, is is a transition, or, one day, you wake up and realize you're an adult (or have been for a while)?

Yet again, "Who knows?" Maybe that's what growing up is all about~ Looking back on this past year (OK, when I start reminiscing like THAT I feel old...), I'd have to say that it sparked a sort of intellectual growth. Maybe it is that bothersome Logic class, or maybe those long talks with GEMKs up at ski camp in front of the fire with that special cup of caramel tea? Maybe it was even that term paper I had to write for my Logic class (10 pages, written in 2 days, reviewed for 1. I'm pretty proud of myself for that, I feel like I've accomplished the impossible. And no, it wasn't because I put it off till the last minute, but rather, it became last-minute because of a rescheduling) on Genetic Engineering. Pretty heavy stuff.

Recently, I also had my first real deep conversation with a non-American (this is both because I had never encountered a Catalan that enjoyed deep discussions, and because I have some extremely intelligent and discussion-eager American friends). I was so proud of myself! Not only am I starting to really understand what I believe, in terms of my faith, but also really why. And I was able to defend it! Usually, I try to avoid confrontation--yes, me, surprising I know-- because I valued the long-term over the short-term. This time, it just kind of flowed out naturally, and I was able to back up everything I believe with Bible verses IN CONTEXT. None of that silly, "take a random group of words from one chapter and interpret it however you want to make it fit into your argument" for me! It was really neat to see how all that reading and learning through the Bible actually came together in an incredible way. And, the said friend hit me with some questions that I would have never even be able to stammer at a year ago.

So, have I grown? Perhaps. After all, "hindsight is 20/20" (I'm also proud of having learned that recently. Growing up overseas does strange things to your "normal sayings" list...). Anyways, if you hear those little birdies telling you that you are old, think of all of the things you've gained this past year: all of the memories you've made, the friends you've laughed and cried with, the knowledge you've accumulated, the lessons you've learned, how your perspective on life has evolved/matured, the things you've had to let go, and, most of all, the conglomerate bustle of life that you've been blessed enough to live. Always appreciate the little things in life, because they are usually the ones that make it worth living day in and day out!