Another year

Today is my 41st birthday. When I was a kid, I thought 40 was ancient... But now that I'm here, I feel more alive and more youthful than I ever did in my 20's or 30's. (Aside from the fact that I can't stay up all night anymore... However, I do get up way before noon nowadays so I think it's a pretty even trade-off.)

Sometimes I wish I would've discovered this whole world of inline skating while back in my 20's - but then I think about the person I was back then. I was insecure, and self-conscious, I had low self-esteem and zero self-confidence. I recall one time while I was working out at the gym, I overheard a girl make a comment about my butt. I was so mortified that I didn't go back to the gym for over a week.. And when I did, I was wearing an oversized t-shirt... Speed skaters know that you cannot obsess over how your ass looks in spandex, because while skating in a pace line your ass is less than a foot away from the person behind you. The last thing you need to be worried about is how your butt looks because you need to be 100% focused on what's in front of you!

I love being in my 40's. It's like having the best of both worlds. If you are healthy and active; you still feel like a kid when your body is in motion. But you also have the wisdom that can only come with life experience. You learn how to feel comfortable in your own skin, accepting who you are - and all of your adorable flaws - embracing them instead of obsessing over them. I feel a lot more at ease with the world and my place in it. I also feel more defined, and definitely a lot more confident!

I also feel like this is the right place and the right time for me to be doing exactly what I am doing. My body feels like it's up for the challenge, my head definitely does; and my heart is completely into it. As for my butt, well, thanks to genetics I had skater butt long before I ever became a skater; and it's only becoming more pronounced. I'm actually kind of proud of it...