My grandma recently turned 80 years old. In those 80 years, she has had four children, quite a few grandchildren, and a couple of great grandchildren. She has been with the love of her life for more than 60 of those years. As my family sat around and listened to her read all of her birthday cards, I’ve never seen anyone look so happy to be turning 80 years old. This was one of the best days of her life. 

And then there’s me, absolutely terrified of even turning 35 years old. That’s what kills me. These 80-year-olds, who have lived most of their lives already, are so happy to be as old as they are, to have experienced everything that they have. 

Earlier this year I read Tuesdays With Morrie. It made me realize that these 80-year-olds are happy because they aren’t afraid of age, of time, or of death. They’ve been too busy making the most of their lives to worry about it. They have lived so much. They don’t regret. They don’t wish they had done anything differently. 

We, the millennial generation, can learn so much from them. I think about Tuesdays With Morrie a lot. I think about my parents and my grandparents and how they’ve lived their lives. Simply observing has inspired me. I’m determined to live as much as possible, to embrace every moment during my time in my sorority, my student organizations and my college career.

I’m pushing myself to try new things, to live an active and healthy lifestyle, to be positive and proactive, to understand that everyone has their own stories, struggles and aspirations, and that they are just as confused as I am about life.

I have just reached a point in my life where I realize what truly matters. And I must tell you, at this time a couple years ago, I didn’t realize much of anything. When you are 18, 19 or 20 years old, the problem is that you believe you have all the time in the world. And I don’t want to keep thinking that I have all the time in the world to live, only to look back and realize that I didn’t.     

One day, when you’re surrounded by your family as you read your birthday cards, you want to know that you would not have a done a single thing differently in your 80 years.