All We Do Is Say Good-Bye

Are you in your 30s? With the holidays a month removed, I got to thinking "Man, where are my family and friends to celebrate the holidays with?"

I am going to be 33 in March, and when I was a kid, holidays, Christmas, in particular, were so great. Every Christmas Eve my grandparents would have everyone over. I had 7 aunts and uncles, and they had kids, and so on. So it was a big gathering, same with Christmas. These were great times. I miss them badly, and now, it seems, those days will only be just a memory.

Young adults today, they move, or they are traveling constantly, living it up. Which, I think is absolutely great, do not get me wrong. I Ubered for a short time and some of the stories I would hear from people my age or younger would all be about "Yea, this job is temporary until I save enough to backpack through Europe for 6 months," or " I am moving to California to be a part of this startup." Again, these are all great things.

But you know, something is getting lost here, and that is time with family. Maybe I have an old soul, but, whatever happened to just taking a vacation? Why does everything have to be so dramatic? Backpacking through Europe for 6 months, living in a van cross country for 3 months, couch surfing along the west coast. Has stuff like this always gone on? I say this because my family always got together when I was a kid and up until my twenties. Once my cousins got old enough to start making money, they moved. Then my friends moved.

This idea that social media is a way to keep in touch with our friends and families through pictures and thumbs ups, I am not into this at all. You know how this story goes right? You are creeping through peoples pages and thinking " wow, look at that, he/she is traveling again," or " they look so happy, but, geez, when I am with them they seem so down or so distracted." Social media to me is like your own personal website, and everything you post on it represents your brand, which is you. It is like watching a really cool commercial about a new product. You think, "Look how great that looks, I think I am going to buy it." Then you do, and it is not what you expected at all.

I want to be able to knock on your door, say what's up, talk about life, catch up on things, have a drink and leave. I do not want to plan 5 days to travel across the world or travel through 6 states to see you, only to have you on your phone the whole time. Where did all the face time go? If I ask this to someone 9 out of 10 responses would be, "FaceTime, you can just do that from your phone."

I love to travel, and my wife and I have our bucket list of places to go. But what we do not have is the "You know what let's quit our jobs and travel through Europe" mindsets. We are both very family oriented. We want to be close by, entertain guests, and have the house where all the good parties happen. Recently my wife and I were talking and we both were like "Is it crazy to say that we do not really have any friends"? I have two brothers, she has two sisters. My one brother lives a couple states away, and her two sisters are travel crazy. The one sister just joined the Peace Corps, and the other sister lives in Chicago (they are originally from Cincinnati). My wife's two sisters embarked on this backpacking trip last year, I believe it was for 3 months. They both donated their eggs for money (I guess this is common now?), quit their jobs, and set out on this adventure. But you know what, what happened after this trip? They had no money, nowhere to live, and no real plan. Again, it sounds like I am talking smack here, but, realistically, is this smart? Yes, the experiences they had are probably ones I will never have but, what is next for them? Their parents will not be alive forever. When they do this again, am I expected to open up my home like a B&B for them?

I am at this point of life where I am at peace with a lot of things. I want to start a family and make sure my kids live this great life. And as I sit here, I wonder, "What is going to happen 18 years from now?" "Are my kids going to leave me? Go on crazy adventures, or move 10 states away"? "What memories will we have together outside of their childhood?" My hope is that there is a healthy balance with what I have stated. Life is all about the experience and memories you make. My hope is that my future memories and experiences are done with my family and friends.