When Did I get Here?

Did you ever stop at some point and ask yourself, "When did I get here?" The first time I experienced this was in the early 90's when my washing machine broke down and I had to use the laundry mat. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with using a laundry mat, in fact, it's quicker if you consider that you can do several loads at the same time, that is if it's not too busy. It's the inconvenience of not having it in your home that gets to me. Anyhow, here I am in my early twenties and excited about a household appliance, when not too long before I was excited about more personal, superficial items such as, clothing, jewelry, shoes, etc. I actually commented about how I couldn't believe that I was so excited about getting a washing machine. Go figure.

Slowly we get older, our expectations for happiness changes, and our priorities shift and what used to bring us happiness pales in comparison to what accomplishes that goal now. Taking care of ourselves changes too. Before I was just concerned about eating my three square meals, and snacks of course, but eventually I became more aware of what I was eating and how much I was moving around. Body consciousness came later for me. I only became concerned about my weight when I began gaining it. But we also have other issues to be concerned about, internal plumbing and such, if you know what I mean. At some point, what I ate became more of a concern for me the older I got.

Now today in class, my students were pulling out their snacks for our break time, and I pulled out what appeared to be a toaster pastry. It had chocolate frosting and chocolate cream inside, and boy did that grab their attention. They wanted to trade with me, but I kept turning them down. What they didn't know was that it was one of those fiber pastries. I'm trying to eat healthier snacks, so I choose something that will benefit me later on while I'm satisfying my chocolate fix now (ahem!). While talking with a colleague later on about it, we both began to laugh. That's when it occurred to me, "When did I get here?" I know I'm in my last months of my 30's, but when did I become my mother? (sorry mom)