Hi! I just turned 21…is there someone on the line?

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Welcome to the 20s calling center…bzbzbzb…please hold the line while we transfer your call..,bzbzb

Hi.? I just turned 21…is there someone on the line?

Bzbzbz..no call assistant can answer your request for the moment. Please hold the line.

Bzbzb..

..

So here I am; I’m 21. An adult worldwide, according to the law. Yet, I have so many questions.

I feel like I have seen a lot, yet I haven’t seen a thing.

I feel like I’ve been getting to know myself, yet I’m still a stranger.

I have traveled, yet I haven’t seen a glimpse of the world.

I know a lot, but I also don’t know much.

The 20s are a storm of questions. Do I need to start settling? Do I need to keep wandering?

Am I doing what I love?

Do I know what I love?

Am I supposed to know what I love just yet ?..

If only there were a calling center for when you turn 21. However, I can’t seem to find the line.

For this special birthday article, I decided to reach out to you to get your view about the hardest things about being in our twenties. I have received so many interesting answers.

With your answers, I have been able to grasp three main variables of why the 20s can be a difficult period:

• Time
• Losses
• Balance

Let’s start with the first one, TIME. The thing about being in our twenties is that we begin to feel how much time matters and how fast it goes. You realize that many of your good times are behind you and wonder if what is ahead will be as much fun.

Plus, you feel like the decisions you must take right now will impact the rest of your life.

You probably have some friends who are still in school.

You probably have some friends who have started working.

You probably have some friends who decided to have a kid.

You probably have this friend who left to travel the world.

How do we know if the path we choose now is right for us?

The second variable I grasped is LOSSES.

The twenties are a new phase of our lives. For the past years, it seemed like everyone was pretty much following the same path, but now, the road is splitting. We choose our direction, but sometimes it implies that we lose some important friends that were with us along the road so far.

Also, maybe you have arrived at the intersection but don’t know which path to take next. It is you and who you are that you feel like you have lost.

Then the third variable I have grasped is BALANCE.

Finding a balance between school, friends, a relationship, and family. Finding a balance between having fun and fulfilling your responsibilities. Finding a balance between wanting to have a career and traveling. Finding a balance between saving money and wanting to spend it and live new experiences.

Finding a balance between being an adult and remaining young.

When I was in high school, I had a teacher in financial education who explained to the class a concept that I believe is at the heart of this life-period dilemma.

So during our twenties, we do not have as much time as we used to. However, we still got a lot of energy, and we are starting to make our own money. We now have responsibilities to assume and our adult life to start, but the fear of missing out still pulls us back.

So where am I going with all of this? Well, I wish this post was about answers. However, instead of writing about what I have learned as I did in my previous birthday posts, I thought about sharing my doubts and questions with you as I enter this new phase of my life.

As I am still in my quest for answers, I’d like to end this post by recommending a movie that I watched a few months ago, which changed my view about the choices we make in life. The movie is called Look Both Ways, starred by the actress Lili Reinhart. What looked at first as a light-hearted teen movie is actually a story with a strong moral that left me silent for a few minutes after the movie ended.

The story is about a young adult, Nathalie, who takes a pregnancy test. Then, the movie splits into two stories: her life as the result of the test is positive, and her life as the result is negative. Wheter you have been in this specific situation, or you have not, it doesn’t matter. The plot can be relatable to any situation in your life where you had to make an important choice and the path it led.

To end on a positive note, there is something else that I did not show you earlier: when I asked about your answers about the worst things about being in your twenties, I also asked about the best things.

Because there might not have a calling center or a phone line to call when we enter our 20s, but I believe there is still a silver lining to this mystery scheme.

The best things about being in our 20s:

I hope you enjoyed this post; feel free to leave a comment or your thoughts on the topic. I would love to read you!

À bientôt!

Juliette