So, these days all we seem to hear about adulting is that it's hard. It seems hard for obvious reasons: you have to pay your own bills, make your own doctors appointment, and pretty much just run your own life.
For me at least, these parts of growing up didn't seem too bad, they were just nuisances to be dealt with. As I get older and older, I realize that adulting is so much more than having to order your own pizza.
This summer, for the first time in my life, I'm working a full-time internship. Actually, to be perfectly honest, I only have to work Monday-Thursday. Anyways, it's pretty much kicking my butt.
My only-in-the-summer-job is totally killing me. When I get home from work, I'm dead tired. I need a nap, and I am definitely more than a little grumpy.
This experience has opened my eyes to a whole new side of life. Adults have it so much harder than we think they do, and it's making me want to publicly issue an apology.
My Dad used to go to work at 2 a.m., get off at 2:20 p.m., and then pick my brother, sister, and I up from school at 3 p.m. He worked hard all the time, always managed to take care of his kids, and I still gave him a hard time for not spending enough time with me.
When he got home from his ridiculously long day, all he wanted to do was take a nap. This sent me into a Tasmanian Devil-like rage. I didn't understand why he didn't want to spend all of his time playing video games or dolls with me.
It has taken me until my 20th year in this life to understand that the man was not ignoring me, he was just tired. He needed a break, and it wasn't because he didn't care about me. All he cared about was me.
I've always had the energy to come home and be excited and ready to spend time with my family or friends. Working took that right out of me. Now, I get home and all I want is a candy bar and a nap. The candy bar cravings are another part of the reason it's so hard to be an adult. Your stomach says sugar but your cellulite begs you for salad.
I have become a hypocrite by any standard, and I hope that my Dad and adults everywhere can forgive me. I concede for the first time in my life that being an adult is actually hard, and I don't even have kids, so I can't imagine what that beast is like.
Try to be sympathetic to the adults in your life from now on, they need it.
