In this post, I share my thoughts as I turned 40 years old last year.
I turned 40 years old last October 19, 2021 but I didn’t really give much
thought about it. Well, I really wanted to write about it since it’s
considered by many as a milestone. However, my mind during that time was
preoccupied with a lot of things that’s why I wasn’t able to focus on it.
Anyway, three months later, I think it’s never really too late to write
about it so here it goes.
Grateful Dad #3: Thoughts On Turning 40
First, I really don’t have a “40 Things I Learned At 40” write up. I
considered my 40th birthday to be like any other of my previous birthdays. I
mean, I felt ordinary and normal. Just the same, four decades is quite a long
time so I still felt grateful to God for giving me 40 years of good health and
many wonderful experiences.
If there’s really one thing that I’m thankful for, it’s being blessed with
good health even though I don’t particularly consider myself as a
health-conscious person. I do try to eat a well-balanced diet and walk but
that’s just about it.
I worry a lot and I still sleep late. I hope to finally have the strength to
worry less and I will touch on that later on.
Second, I’d like to share some of the most valuable things that I realized
during the last two or three years leading to my 40th birthday.
Taking on these learnings or realizations is probably the best thing that I
did for myself. You see, when I was younger, I did worry about what other
people would say about me. I never admitted that because I wanted to always
put up a brave face but I’m sure you are also like that although in different
ways.
We worried about how we looked, how we spoke, or how others perceived us. For
me, I worried too much that people wouldn't like me to the point that I was
even too conscious of being perceived as having a personality problem. What
I’m trying to say is that I wanted to always appear jolly and friendly.
As such, I was always apologetic. I would always say, “Sorry, I think I
misunderstood you” or “Sorry, I didn’t know that.” I would always blame myself
when things go beyond my control. When I lose my temper, I blame myself for
being too sensitive.
My point is that I was too unkind to myself. Eventually, it took its toll on
me especially because I bottle my emotions up. I was always stressed out and I
got irritated easily. I’m still irritable though but I’m working on it.
Just last year, I told myself that I should be kinder to myself and that I
should learn to acknowledge my emotions. If I get hurt about something, no
matter how minor the reason is, then I should acknowledge it as it is and not
blame myself for being too sensitive.
That way, I get to tackle the issue easily and then move on from it. If I
don’t acknowledge it, I realized that I had the tendency to carry the weight
of it for years and then bring the issue back to life later on. In short, face
an issue now, address it, then move on.
On another note, I also told myself that I should celebrate every achievement,
no matter how small it is. Better yet, I promised that if anything makes me
happy, then I should celebrate it as long as it’s not causing any harm or
damage to myself or anybody.
So far, the practice of acknowledging my emotions has been doing me good these
past few months. I’m still a work in progress though and I celebrate that,
nonetheless.
Speaking of celebration, we just had a simple one at home since the COVID-19
pandemic is still out there. We ordered our favorite food items from
Hotdish
like the pancit sisig, empanada, spaghetti, and the beef caldereta.
It was our first time to try the beef caldereta from Hotdish. It was really
delicious. The sauce was thick and flavorful with just the right hint of
spiciness. The beef, meanwhile, is meaty and very tender. It’s one of the best
beef caldereta that I’ve tasted.
I also appreciated that Mommy Khris ordered a quite upscale (at least for me)
cake from Naked Patisserie. The cake is called Chocol-icition cake which is
basically a chocolate overload cake. It does look overloaded with chocolate.
It’s topped with truffles, cookies, and chocolate bars.
|
Chocol-icition cake from Naked Patisserie |
This Chocol-icition cake from Naked Patisserie is highly-recommended if you
want to give something extra for any special occasion. Plus, it tastes as good
as it looks.
So that’s how my 40th birthday went. There was nothing spectacular but what
made it special was because I was able to celebrate it with my loved ones.
How about you, what are you thankful for these days? Share them in the comment
section below.
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Wow same date and month po pala kayo ng birthday ng kapatid ko kakatuwa naman😍agree po kahit gaano ka simple yung birthday celebration natin mag eenjoy pa dun tayo pag kasama yung nga mahal natin sa buhay.
ReplyDeleteKahit simple lang yung birthday ang importante po kasama natin ang family. Pati natakam po ako sa pancit sisig hehehehhe sasaya talaga ang birthday
ReplyDeleteYou're so young. I'm 70 and at 40 I was in my prime.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous Thankful Thursday. ☺
I sort of remember turning 40, and my friends teasing me about being "over the hill". But now that I'm approaching 70 I find that I don't even remember the hill I went over LOL! Thanks for joining our Thankful Thursday Blog Hop!
ReplyDelete