Guilt Free Non-Conformity–Doing Not as your Parents Did

It’s easy to follow the norm.  By norm, I am referring to following the preset description of how one’s life should be lived; or in other words, the way your parents did it.  Grow up, go to college, get a job, find someone to marry, have a few kids, and work for a while until you are old enough–or rich enough–to retire.  But what if you don’t feel at home in that skin?  What if your goals don’t include marriage, kids or retirement?  What if you decided to switch the order around, or you didn’t spend the suggested amount of time on any one segment of your life, jumping past one right into the other?  What would your parents, or friends, or authority, say about you because they may think you’re making a cosmic boo-boo by  not following the pre-defined pattern of our Western culture?

Well, that’s my life, and as of recently, it seems like whatever pattern I was supposed to follow just fell down the rabbit hole along with myself and those I love. I, for one, incurred the doubt of many of my older friends who cautioned me to slow down, to take it easy, to see where things go and be on my guard.  But, for once, my head, my heart and my gut all agree, telling my common sense to take a back seat and just watch for a while. I find myself being myself, with no odd moments of trying to be someone different, or trying to mold myself to be something someone else wants me to be.  I could just be me, and be accepted for who I am–good and not so good–in my own, self-defined skin.  And to those who cautioned me that I was going too fast, I take your heed, and I blatantly ignore your warnings.  Everything seems to be working for us without the need to follow the same timeline that you, and your parents, did.