Christmas was good...a little family drama, but nothing directly involving us so we survived mostly unscathed.
This felt like our first full-fledged grown-up Christmas, for a lot of reasons, one of which is that it's the first year that none of our grandparents gave us money or gifts. This is actually a good thing - we've been trying for years to find the delicate balance between letting our families know how much we appreciate their graciousness and generosity, and also letting them know that we don't NEED anything and don't want them to feel obligated to pony up the cash...especially as the family grows generation by generation. So this year they got the hint, and it made me feel a little older ;-)
The other signal of adulthood this season: I got some new luggage for Christmas and it's the best gift I've received in ages! I'm so excited. As my sister says: "You know you're an adult when you're excited about LUGGAGE!" But it's so COOL! I've been using my current set of luggage for about 15 years without complaint, but the new stuff has wheels and retractable handles and fancy compartments and extra little accessories like shoe bags and toiletry bags...I can't wait to take a trip.
But these little Christmas experiences got me thinking...what were the things that made you feel grown-up? And I'm not talking about the obvious things like paying bills. What were those things that felt like a secret password into the world of adults? Was it finally sitting at the adult table during the holidays (and how old were you when that happened)?
Here are a couple of mine (and I'm sure I'll think of more):
1. Finally grasping the concept of square footage. I was raised by a general contractor and a real estate agent, so square footage came up a lot in general conversation in our house. When I was young I was totally mystified by the concept. I knew it had to do with size, but I could never tell if, say, 5000 square feet was large or small or what. Then, while I was in high school, we moved several times in quick succession. Finally I had a sufficient pool for comparison and it all clicked. I remember asking other people my age about the square footage of their homes and getting blank stares...but I just felt so adult being able to think in those terms.
2. Appreciation of housewares. The great torture of my childhood shopping experiences with mom was the inevitable detour into the housewares department. I absolutely hated this! It just seemed like the most boring thing imaginable - why would you look at furniture and appliances and sheet sets when you could spend time shopping for clothes? My sister and I would grumble and sigh and drag our feet until we could get back to the "real" shopping. Then my sister went away to college and defected - she became an appreciator of housewares, too! Traitor. I couldn't comprehend it. I felt abandoned. Then I went to college and moved into an apartment, and the great mysteries of the housewares department were revealed.
So what were your landmarks on the road to adulthood? (If there's anyone out there still reading this after my long absence).
