Say Yes

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Not that I’m counting (I’m counting), but in about 150 days, I’m going to turn 30. Heavy sigh.

I remember falling asleep after my 23rd birthday.That particular birthday (Wednesday, October 29th), I had invited a bunch of my friends out to sushi. The place had neon blue lighting and cool roll names like the Awesome and OMG Roll. Perfect for a bunch of giggly, twenty-somethings. We had a great dinner and I would’ve been happy with that being it. But my boyfriend at the time wanted to continue the night at the continuation of Game 5 of the World Series between the Phillies and the Tampa Bay Rays.

“I don’t know.” I wined. I found myself regurgitating some of my mom’s favorite phrases:

“It’s going to be crowded!”
“It’s kinda chilly!”
“How will we get home?!”

But after some persuasion and probably another Sam Adams Cherry Wheat (my favorite beer of my early twenties), I said yes. And, holy crap, I was glad I did.

Hours later, after the Phillies big win, I was skipping down Broad St. with friends and strangers. We hugged. We laughed. We handed out Obama stickers. It was the best.

Not all birthdays have been that easy to digest. And I’m not sure how I’ll sleep the first night of my thirties. But that night I went to bed so happy I said yes.

My impending thirties has made me realize, I don’t say yes as much as I should. I get stuck in safety and routine. Why sit with my back straight when slouching is so easy? This is not who I want to be. I want to put my shoulders back. I want to open myself up to the universe.

Jim Carrey made a movie dedicated to this way of living, Yes Man. You probably never saw it or maybe you saw it on a flight and it’s now one of your favorites as is the power of the in-flight movie. Either way, it’s the one where based on the simple idea of saying yes to everything, Jim Carrey and cutiepatootie, Zoey Deschanel, get caught up in some goofy, wacky adventures. This, for the most part, is my inspiration.

Listen, I’m not trying to do bucket list, life-threatening shit here as you’ll see in the entries to come (Spoiler alert: I almost get a tattoo). I don’t need to jump out of a plane. Yet. I simply want to go to bed on the last night of twenties, and every night after, with the satisfaction that I gave yes a chance.