Growing Up

Do you ever have those thoughts, even now, as an adult, like “Hmmm! I’m really a grown-up now!” I do. I still have those feelings often. In a lot of ways, I’ve never gotten away from the little girl on County Line Road. I carry her with me, still, along with her expectations and surprises.

The first time I encountered this in a big way, I was sitting at the top of the Marriott hotel in San Francisco, enjoying the view and a drink with a friend while on a business trip. It was one of my early trips, and Little Becky had not flown before going to San Francisco for the first time, for a human resources software conference. Little Becky could not have imagined herself in such a remote and stylish setting, ever. Little Becky was going to be a Mother and a Teacher. That’s all I ever thought about being, really. Well, I’ve grown up to be those things, and more. Much more.

I didn’t know, then, that learning and evolving into a wiser and better person would become a life-long habit, that my job would sometimes speak the least about who I am, that my work could take me into new worlds, that I would ever get to see the earth from the sky, or the massive cities that I have visited. I didn’t know there could be so many people in the world, all doing their diverse work. I didn’t know that I could be one of them. I’ve learned since, that everyone carries a child within them. Mine has been surprised sometimes when I’m out driving, thinking, “Wow, I really am a grownup now!” Mine is really surprised that I am actually going to relocate. I’ve never done that before. That’s something that other people do, not me. “Wow, after I do that, I’ll really be a grown-up!” What does your inner child think about your growing up?