They Grow Up So Fast

In a blink of an eye, my quarter-century mark is coming up in several months. I've noticed that all around me, people are growing up quickly. Most of my friends my age at work are all married. And if they're not married, they're in super serious relationships with individuals that they've been dating since they were in high school. Next month, one of my closest friends from college is getting married. Just today, I found out that another one of my close friends got engaged. (Congrats, Jon and Lauren!)

As for me, I feel that I just got comfortable with my job and figured out the ropes. After 2.5 years, I've become one the "senior" members of the organization. But in no way do I feel like one of the senior members. As for the rest of my personal life, I have no idea what I'm doing. It's like the blind leading the blind, except no one is leading me. I'm just wildly grasping on my own. I've started the business school search and the GMAT studying, but is this what I really want to do? I've entered a relationship that keeps me grinning like an idiot, but horribly scared at the same time. What if I mess things up? In terms of financial security, I have a small buffer saved up in accounts scattered throughout, but by no means am I independently wealthy. Do I even have enough for a down payment on a condo? Maybe the bigger questions is -- is Chicago going to be home? Or is the West Coast calling out to me?

Less than a decade ago, I thought the biggest decisions were choosing a college and a major. In retrospect, those decisions weren't life-altering. But then again, I'll look back upon these decisions someday and realize that they're not so life-altering either. Everything always has a way of working themselves out.