livin’ my life like it’s platinum

Back on January 2, 2019, I made a pact with myself that I was going to take as much care of myself as I could, to see if I could reverse the visible stress caused by our Hurricane Harvey ordeal. It’s been over 2 years, and I’ve kept my promise: I drink tons more water than I used to, I move way more than I used to, I’ve meditated every morning for the past 2 years on almost a daily basis. I rarely wear black anymore, preferring bright colours (today’s pale pink is an aberration). And the truth is, I notice a difference: I feel healthier and more even-keeled than I’ve felt in years. Admittedly, the fear of getting coronavirus has kept me focused over the last year — in the event I contracted the virus, I wanted to ensure that I was as healthy going into it as I could’ve been — but the fact is that even with the stressors that accompany being locked down for more than14 months (not to mention all the crazy going on in the world), I’ve held it together pretty well.

In almost exactly 13 weeks, I’ll be 54 years old — officially in my mid-50s. And while I’m certainly fine with this — aging has never been something that gets me down — it’s enough to make a sister stop and think. I mean, now that I’m feeling good, what else can I do to really level up? What would it look like if I ran headlong into my mid-50s: things like no more (admittedly sporadic) hair dyeing, more adventure, and instead lived 100% the way I want 54 to look and feel, instead of how magazines or media or, well, ANYONE else says 54 should look and feel?

What if I ... *gasp* ... created what it looks and feels like to be in my mid-50s on my own terms?

So yesterday, I took the first step: I cut all my dyed hair off. I read somewhere recently that by the age of 50, most women are at least 50% grey (who knew, right?). So cutting my hair off, for the first time ever (because let’s face it, I’m always cutting my hair off), felt like a bit of an act of resistance. It was a revelation: I had more silver than I remember. (For the record, the images in this post make my hair look more-salt-less-pepper than it does in real life; however, the photos I took yesterday look more-pepper-less-salt than in real life. Imagine something in between, and you’ll get the idea.) And it felt kind of … badass, honestly. Like, wiser. More confident. Sparkly.

And like a woman who is not to be trifled with.

So, that’s step one handled. I wonder what’s next. The world is getting more and more vaccinated, so who knows — maybe some more adventure is around the corner.

Checkpoint.