The old and the new man

Today I turn 28, giving me pause to reflect on the man I am and the man I want to be.

27 was my golden year, 777, and fit that quality with fun friends, the new adventure of school and opportunities opening up to show me a world more ripe with potential than any I've known previously. There were challenges that sought to overwhelm me, such as my shoestring budget, but each time I learned a good lesson. I am now a man poised for new ideas, eager for stimulation and ready to say yes to anything.

28 looks to challenge my foundations; not to shatter them, but to test for endurance. Today I feel raw and exposed like a newly formed brick, waiting to see if I have been constructed well enough to withstand the heat and the rain. I look at the sea of possibility and realize that I need to learn to wade selectively so as not to drown. I look at the new ideas I see in increasing numbers and hurt to think I must begin to say no. The man I want to be is eager, but brave and patient. Patient enough to wait for the right opportunity and brave enough to stand firm upon it when it comes.

This will be a year to watch, to learn from and to ground me in whatever future lays ahead