While my twenties were more about seeking out what life had in store for me, starting my thirties made me feel a growing need for belonging. It isn’t just about having close friendships, having a sense of roots, feeling valued and respected by colleagues at work (for having valuable contributions), having a sense of shared responsibilities with the community, and being connected with others with the same interests. I’m also feeling a strong pull towards having a sense of self.
If I am stripped of my accolades, money, and degree. Who am I really? What kind of person am I without these things?
These questions bring me back to where I began.
Before everything else, I was a daughter, a sister, and a friend. This realization, which I had during a major life transition in 2021, made me wonder deeply about my worth.
So, every day, I seek to become a better version of my past self by becoming a better daughter, a better sister, and a better friend. I have never felt closer to a kind of belonging that is as fulfilling as I do while being all these things.
P.S.:
Even in my youth, I didn’t have many friends. But as I got into my thirties, I never thought my small circle could get even smaller. Only the most intimate of friends, those who stick like a brother, remain. But even that couldn’t compare to a sibling you’re bound by blood. As a gift of aging, I have become closer to family. Here’s when I realized how important family units are because they are the ones you really stick to when you get older. Even more so when the family is grounded in the love of Jesus Christ.
jessa 