25 years in the making

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words.  Well, this is a pic that Steve captured of me on my 25th birthday - 23 May 2009.  What exactly is this picture saying?!?!?  Whatever the confusion might be, I really was thrilled to turn 25.  I'm pretty sure it's gonna be a great year.  I decided to make a dent in those thousand words with the following post.  I hope you come away excited for your next birthday celebration and all the random thoughts that cross your mind when you hear "one year older and wiser too" playing over and over again in your head all day long...

So, like I said, I celebrated my 25th birthday yesterday.  Do I feel different?  Nope.  Do I look different?  Probably not.  So what's different?  LOTS!!!  Life is continually changing, which is why it is so interesting and fun to catch a snapshot of life at a particular moment.  To capture the moment of turning 25, I want to list some things about life - twenty five things, to be specific - that are meaningful to me at this point.  Some have led me to where I am today, others are characteristics that I can't seem to shake.  Some items are obvious, others may seem incredibly random, but they're all meaningful to me.  So here it goes (in no particular order):

1) My parents named me Kristen Kathleen.  It's a good, solid name.  They never thought it would fly to name me Bambi if I ever wanted to land a steady career.  I appreciate their consideration - truly.

2) I got lucky with diabetes.  Yeah, shots and finger pricks aren't always great, but it could have been something so much worse.  I can walk, run, think, reason, laugh, love, etc, etc, etc.  In some ways, I had to grow up fast.  Immaturity and diabetes do not mix well.  I'm grateful to realize that I am human, and sometimes, the limits I have from diabetes keep me in check, which would otherwise be completely non-existent with the crazy expectations I sometimes ask of myself.

3) Friendships mean everything to me.  Acquaintances come and go, but true friends stick around for the long haul.  Their sorrows are my sorrows, their joys my joys.  I haven't always been the greatest friend (I hit a few rough spots in high school, but I think all is well now), but I do try.  For those "kindreds" out there, you have no idea how much influence you've had in my life. 25 is even sweeter because you're still part of the ride. 

4) I'm extremely ticklish.  This is one of those characteristics that is impossible to change,  no matter how hard I try.  The rubbish my dad tries to feed me about it being an issue of "mind over matter" is just that - RUBBISH!!!  It doesn't work.  I've tried.  The reason I kind of like this about myself, however, is that my reactions are totally entertaining.  I guess it keeps me young at heart.  Will I retire from "ticklish" when I turn 65?  Don't bet on it.

5) I don't sing in public.  I did it once and that was enough for a lifetime - my friends should have stopped me, but they didn't!  I appreciate this because I realize that we can't all be good at everything - life would be bland and boring if everyone did everything at exactly the same level.  Luckily, I have incredible friends with incredible voices to listen to, so I'm totally content.

6) Despite my singing inhibitions, I'm proud to admit that I've been blessed with "musical earlobes."  This is a Dave Irvine original.  Do me a favor.  Go look at yourself in the mirror.  Pay particular attention to your ears, and zoom in on your earlobes.  Do they connect immediately to your head, or do they have a bit of a dangle?  Please don't think I'm psycho, but the best comparison I can give to help you understand the difference is comparing the ears of Curious George to those of Buddha.  See the difference?  If you've got some dangle - congratulations - you've been blessed with musical earlobes.  This is something I share with my dad, which is the real reason why I decided to play clarinet in jr. high band (he plays clarinet and saxophone in a sweet little dance band).

7) I'm sort of short.  This allows me to prove to myself that big challenges can be overcome, even if you're short.  Growing up, my docs never thought I'd make it past 5'0" - happy to report that I proved them wrong...even if it did take a long time.  A friend of mine gave me a copy of "Short People" by the King Singers for my birthday in junior high.  That has been one of my favorite b-day presents to this day because I think it is so hilarious.

8) I love to paint.  It reminds me to view life in color rather than black and white.

9) Serving a mission in the TSAM.  This forever changed my view of Texans, my view of service, my view of the love of the Lord, my view of myself, etc.  Everything changed for the better, and my mission provided an incredible springboard for the rest of my life.

10) I chew ice.  I am an ice-chewing ADDICT!  Even though I know it's not the best hobby for my enamel, I'm thankful for odd quirks that I can't really seem to figure out.

11) I color-coordinate my closet.  I think Ann is my only friend that has seen it in all its grandeur and glory, and I think she laughed at me when she saw it.  Laugh if you will, but I like to see an organized closet starting with white on the left, then going through tans, pinks, oranges, reds, purples, greens, blues, browns, grays, and blacks finishing it out on the right.  I appreciate colorful organization.

12) I like to express myself through letters.  Sometimes I'm not sure what to say in person, or how to say it best, but I always love sharing thoughts and feelings through words.  Memories and experiences are more tangible when they're written about, rather than just remembered.

13) I'm grateful for situations that have made me rise to the challenge.  I'm definitely okay being an indian rather than a chief, but it's nice knowing that I can be a chief if the need arises.  I love opportunities that make me step out of my comfort zone.

14) I graduated from BYU.  Those were some great years filled with fun and laughter, some sorrow and tears, and a sense of accomplishment when all was finally said and done.  I finished one leg in the journey of education, which I value so much.  I'm thankful for all the experiences there that made me stretch and progress.

15) I graduated from BYU - without being married.  I hated all the assumptions people had when I told them I was going to BYU because they figured I went there just to find a husband.  News flash - I went there to get a good education.  And I also held off on the marriage thing to avoid being shipped to a convent in Albania by a father who was uber-concerned that the pod people were going to overtake me during my 6-year stint in Provo.  =)  

16) Steven Grant Adams.  Fiancee and dearest friend.  Apparently I barely squeaked out of BYU unmarried since I knew around November that I wanted to marry him, and graduated one month later in December.  He proposed four months after that.  Phew!  That was close.  Any closer and my dad may have lost it entirely.  Steve is absolutely wonderful.  I really do feel like the luckiest girl because I am marrying the greatest guy.  He challenges me everyday (without even realizing it) to become not only better, but my very best self.  I'm so grateful...

17) I have an awesome heritage.  Since the Irvine time-spans between generations tend to be longer than most, I don't know many of my "great" relatives.  However, family get-togethers and hobbies that I enjoy serve as a link to the people of my past.  I'm grateful for their unseen influence that has shaped my life.

18) Star-gazing.  Love it, love it, LOVE IT!!!  My best memories are family trips to Lake Powell when I'd get to sleep on top of the houseboat and drift into unconsciousness covered by an enormous blanket of brilliant stars.  It reminds me of how tiny we all are in the eternal scheme of things, yet also how grand we all are in that same scheme.  Amazing.

19) I'm grateful for anything that causes uninhibited laughter - the kind that results in tears.  That is one of the best feelings in all the world - when your stomach muscles are burning and your eyes are gushing.  There's nothing quite like it.  Laughter, at times, is the very best medicine.

20) Dave and Linda Irvine, as well as Derrill and Lana Larkin - pillars of strength, greatest examples and sounding boards, life-time friends and confidantes.  Words can never do these people justice...

21) Learning to drive the jeep, or play the piano, or figuring out how to master an upper-case "Q" in cursive - basically, anything that requires patience and diligence.  All of these things, and many more, have taught, or continue to teach me about essential attributes.

22) A dislike of mushrooms, beets, and lamb meat.  Random?  Yes.  My point here, is that it's okay to have dislikes.  I'm not going to like everything I encounter in life - nor will everything I encounter in life like me - but that's okay!  It took me awhile to figure this one out. 

23) The play "Noises Off."  I saw this play at the Utah Shakespearean Festival years and years ago, but I've never forgotten it.  I think it's hilarious, but it also taught me an important lesson.  No matter what you see going on in life, there is always more to the real story taking place backstage.  People are more complex than they seem, and you lose out on so much if you pass judgment on first impressions and just leave it at that.  Sometimes the hidden stories are funnier than expected, sometimes they are sadder than expected, but finding out what's really going on is essential to any kind of understanding.  

24) Flowers.  There is so much variety in flowers.  They're pretty as single stems, and they're beautiful in bouquets.  Some smell great, others have no scent at all.  Some are tall, some short, others are strong, and many are incredibly delicate and fragile.  Regardless of time or season, flowers always bring a smile to my face.

25) Last but not least, I'm simply grateful to be me.  I only have 25 years of experience in life, but hey, that's 25 years of life experience that I can share with others that may need it.  I'm grateful to be me because somehow, somewhere at sometime, I met you.  Even if I haven't seen you or spoken with you for a long time, I'm grateful for who you are.  Thanks for making a contribution in some way - large or small - that has meant so much to one Kristen Kathleen Irvine upon turning twenty-five.