On their first date, my friend Tina’s now boyfriend asked
her a big question:
“Where do you see yourself in five years?”
Much to her credit, she told him the truth, that she plans
to be a mother, regardless of whether she is married.
“I knew I might scare him off,” Tina told me, “but I figured
it would come out eventually anyway. If that was going to scare him, may as
well scare him now!”
Very good point.
Anyway, this has had me thinking about My Five Year Plan. (More specifically, that said plan does
not exist.)
Not being married certainly changed
my perspective on the future. When I was with Max, it wasn’t My Five Year Plan,
it was Our Five Year Plan. I thought that would include parenthood and getting
dragged into a house (I’m so an apartment kind of person) and... ummm... I don't know. We'd do married stuff, like grow old together and talk about the good old days when we rented movies from Blockbuster and no one had a phone on the dinner table.
So much for Our Five Year Plan.
But now, I’m 35, unmarried, and living a pretty comfortable existence.
I have a stable job that I like. I own an apartment that I love. I love the town I live in; it’s the kind of place that allows for families and singles to coexist. I have solid, fulfilling relationships with my friends and family. I’m Putting Myself Out There. (I actually met two cool guys last week!)
Given the overall healthy place I’m in now, what should I be
hoping and working for by the time I’m 40 in 2020?
Do I want to relocate?
Do I want to change careers?
Sitting here right now, my resounding answer is… eh, not
really!
Honestly, I’m happy with how my life is today, therefore I
think I would be happy if my life doesn’t change much. (Though, I would love to find love again.)
Based on the information I have right now,
Based on the information I have right now,
my Five Year
Plan is for 2020
to not look at that different from 2015.
to not look at that different from 2015.
But, is that a good thing or a bad thing? Am I living a blessed, charmed life? Or am I not pushing myself hard enough?
Do you have a Five Year Plan? What does your plan look like?
