As most have said, it keeps getting better and better. Oddly enough, even when things are going poorly, as you age you see these as opportunities for growth and learning (not too sound too much like a Hallmark card). I’m much more capable of rolling with the punches now.
17 was fun, but I’m having more fun now than I ever did as a teenager.
At some time, you will realize that all your stomach-grinding crises up until now don’t amount to a handful of dandelion seeds. All the pain was in the way you reacted to them. Once you figure that out, you can devote more attention to the small pleasures you have been ignoring.
Wow. Looks like someone needs a username change.
Susan
(33 1/2, and still finding simple joys.)
Thank you, I’ll be here all week! 
Jesus, you’re practiucally a baby. You don’t have a clue how good it gets.
I’m 35. I have my own house now and that makes me really happy and proud. I have fun with my wife. I find simple joys all around me. I have great fun playing softball. I read good books and look at the stars and am almost overwhelmed by the wonder of it.
That would all be fun by itself but then in 2005 we had our little girl, and I have to tell you, I cannot imagine how a human being could be happier than how I feel when she gives me a big hug.
And I have to agree with those who point out that anyone who thinks life ends at 30 is either (a) a teenager, or (b) a moron. I had LOTS of fun in high school and in my 20s, and sure I’d like to be as fit as I was when I was 19 and all that shit, but life is FAR more enjoyable now. As hard as I work, I don’t put in nearly as many hours as I did when I was going to school and working. I have money enough to do things, I have a spouse who supports me, I have a real job with real pay, and of course my little princess.
I remember my Dad telling me my 30s would be much more fun than my 20s and I thought he was stupid. Oh, how wrong I was. He was 100% right.
The world’s full of great stuff if you’re willing to work for it and smile when it arrives.
Well said, RickJay. That about covers it.
Honestly, I think life keeps getting better every day. I can’t wait until the last one because it ought to be the best yet!
Dude, it’s what you make it. If it’s going “downhill” then take up skiing.
Yesterday was one of the physically hardest days at work I’ve ever experienced and I had, amongst the pain and stress, a perfect moment that will carry me through many more such days.
It’s not just the hope of such moments, but the search for such moments that make life so sweet.
Cyn, who will be 45 this fall.
A thought for you - how do you know you’re not having perfect moments all the time, and you’re just not noticing them?
I’m 36 and I still have perfect moments. A few examples are the first time I saw a coral reef with my own eyes (just last year) and catching a perfect sunset. I guess it depends on how easy or hard it is for you to be amazed.
susan, I’m glad it was you who beat me to it.
Amen. I’ve never been happier in my life than I am now at 41, with a nice home, a wonderful marriage, a great job, and the ability to do pretty much what I want, within reason.
Honestly, me too. I’m 43 years old and I am the happiest I’ve ever been in my life.* I was happy at 17 but my God what a baby I was, and everyone is at that age! The richness of life has yet to unfold. You don’t see and appreciate the beauty that surrounds the moments of everyday living. As you get older, the more satisfying the commonplace becomes.
Anyway – what you think are pure moments of genuine happiness evolve over time. The more you live and experience, the more you appreciate these gems: the gifts of natural beauty, the love of family and friends and the satisfation of being as good a person as you are able to be.
I’m 44.
I have no personal or profession achievements to look forward to.
Downhill.
Or lowering your expectations far enough? What’s “perfect”, anyway?
Oh pish posh Bosda, I’m sure you have stuff going for you. At the very least, you’re a funny dude!
And Lobsang, that kind of talk demands a night of pub-crawling with the boys. You’re much too young to have such existential angst.
I’m looking forward to the next time I can get Bosda to thwack me with a wet trout.
Seriously tho, life is what you make it. The best thing about getting older is that there are fewer people that are allowed to make you feel bad.
Aw, cheer up, Eeyore. Just think, you’ll be breaking the 20,000 post milestone in just a couple months! Break out the confetti!
It’s totally possible- I had one of those moments yesterday, when I was peeling an orange. The weather was beautiful, the old dog was sleeping beside me, the adorable kitten was stuck in a tree three feet off the ground, and digging into the orange just felt like heaven.