Post No. 112 - The myth of milestones

My partner's son is about to turn 21: as is so common at such times, we've been organising a party (two, in this case). At one of them, a somewhat insensitive guest made a remark (intended, I suspect, to be light-hearted) about the party being "small for a twenty-first". Well, it was bigger than my twenty-first: I had to be pushed to have anything, and even relented and had a couple of friends over to my parents for tea.

That was more than ample for me: I've never been much of a one for celebrating the supposed milestones, and following the supposed sequence of events, that we are "supposed" to - you know, have a rebellious teenage period, get married, buy a house, have kids, travel in old age which was the expectation when I was growing up).

A lot of these so-called "normal" things are a reflection of the times we live in: a few centuries of millenia ago, in various societies it was "normal" to have slaves and be counted (if you were male) as a "man" when you killed your first man.

These "rules" of what is normal are often constructs (especially the rubbish about poor behaviour, such as being rude, selfish or rebellious at various ages): I would strongly suggest you do not take ANYTHING for granted, and do NOT hold yourself back to meet the petty limitations in "society's" rules - and be ware when such rules are advised by friends or peers.

Love, light, hugs and blessings

Gnwmythr

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Tags: about me, limitations, society, personal characteristics, personal responsibility, lifestyles, life lessons, socialisation, expectations,

First published: Sunday 16th May, 2010

Last edited: Sunday 16th May, 2010