There is no denying What’s My Age Again? by Blink-182 is a classic punk rock song. If you had a pulse in 1999, you are familiar with it. It bombarded the radio and was without a doubt an anthem. Today, nearly 14 years after its release, it will still get you to turn up the radio dial when it comes on. Sometimes, you might even think to yourself “Gosh, this song is stupid, annoying, pointless (insert your own adjective here)”, yet you can’t help yourself from singing along. (What’s unfortunate is in ten years Call Me Maybe will probably make it into this bracket, too. I think we can all agree that’s depressing.)
Furthermore, if you really hone in on the lyrics of What’s My Age Again, you’ll realize it simultaneously has nothing to do with anything but everything to do with everything. What do I mean by this? Let me explain…
We all reach an age were we feel as though we’ve peaked. We’ll never be able to act young and stupid ever again and have it be justified. Our glory days are behind us; we think we’re “old school”. (Hell, I feel like that some days, and I just turned 24 two weeks ago!) This nostalgic feeling can do one of two things: 1. Lead to positive life advancements or 2. Do precisely the opposite.
My grandma, Helen Sczublewski, who passed away this month is a prime example. On May 30th, she would have turned 96 years old. Ninety-six freakin’ years old. Now, that’s old! Her husband passed away over 30 years ago, and that didn’t stop her from living independently at home until she was 93. She even drove her car until age 91! Yes, she might have been the old grandma people my age get ticked-off at for driving too slow but still, that takes guts. She never viewed her age as a burden. As I looked at her sitting in her hospital bed a few weeks ago, she looked like a damn Abraham Lincoln statue, relentless and strong. Unstoppable. I know she went straight up to heaven because she just wouldn’t have it any other way.
With that said, it doesn’t matter what age you encounter this longing for yesteryear feeling. Some of you might even experience it more than once throughout the course of your life. Regardless of what birthday or anniversary or season it hits, it’s always your response that counts. Whether you fight it (change, that is) or embrace it makes all the difference. Once you accept it, you begin to understand the capital of your own experiences can turn you into whoever you want to be. From there, you gain a level of confidence you may not have felt in a long time (or ever before). You begin to change the way you look at things subsequently the things you look change. You become empowered. Don’t be ashamed of it!
In summary, stop pretending you’ve peaked at age 30 because it’s just not true. Start analyzing yourself and access whether or not you’re doing something that is helping to advance you personally or professionally or both. If your answer is yes, that’s great! If your answer is no, do you know why? More than likely you’re letting your age determine your attitude.
So what’s my age, again? Who cares. What matters is what you’re doing with your age.