Everyone at some point in their lives have experienced a first something. Those firsts, if impactful, shape us into the people we are. These six, though not all very influential, are experiences people should go through at some point in their lives. Now, if you have no experienced one of these, 1. there is still time, and 2. you do not have to go though one if you do not want to, these are all just experiences people usually go through by the time they turn 20.
1. First time riding a bike
One of the first signs you are starting to grow up. Your parents take the training wheels off your bike, and you stand there, more excited than ever. You get on, thinking ‘how hard can it be? Everybody else can do it, so it has to be easy!’ That thought is shattered when you fall down what feels like a hundred times, get up, and say you’ll never get back on, only to find yourself convinced to give the bike one more try. At some point that ‘one more try’ is when you get the hang of it, and you realize you are never going back.
2. First time driving by yourself
You are stuck driving with your parents, or at least a responsible, licensed adult when you first start driving. Then, the day finally comes where you get to prove all that practice was worth it. You pass the exam, and you get that little slip of paper. Your dad tosses you the keys and says you’re driving home, and this time it feels different. That feeling is only amplified when you go to grab the keys after that and realize you can go out on your own. Even if you are just driving down the road, the fact that you can now feel foreign, and you’re not entirely sure what to do about it.
3. First Graduation
Graduation really is not for the students who are graduating. It is actually for everyone who helped you get there. Parents, teachers, mentors, anyone who had some hand in seeing you grow up and get through different parts of your life. However, high school graduation is your chance to look around you can see the people you spent four years with. It is a day for you to finally realize all that petty drama really will not matter in a few months. It is one of the first times that you realize that life is bigger than the town where you grew up. In a few months, you’ll be surrounded by new faces and new challenges, but graduation is the day you get to appreciate where you came from, so you can be excited about where you are going.
4. First sleepover
This one might be more for girls, but the ten-year-old me is whole-heartedly agreeing that this first is one every pre-teen girl needs to cherish. No, it is not like the movies. There were no pillow fights, there was no spin the bottle, and there was always a parent in the house, but you got to see your friends outside of school. You gossiped about this and that, ate pizza (a sleepover staple), and probable fell asleep to a random movie everyone could agree on, but it was different.
5. First kiss
I have been told my entire life that your first kiss is probably the worst of your life. While that might not be completely true, it probably is not going to be the best either. Well, at least I hope not. You have no idea what you are doing, and if both parties are in the same boat it will no be anything like the last romance movie you watched, but it is still your first kiss. There is probably a good chance you will not talk to your first kiss for the rest of your life, so you have fun story to tell your grandkids someday, but remember the overall moment because it is another sign that you are growing up.
