DeMora – “Enjoy your youth. You’ll never be younger than you are at this very moment.”

When this blog first came to my mind, I honestly wasn’t sure what to write about. Between work, school, and a social life, it seems far too “normal” or “boring” to be a true struggle. But then I really started thinking… “What’s it like to be 20 years old in today’s society?” And that my friends, is when I realized the one struggle we all face at different points in our lives… The struggle to fit in.

Now, I’m not here to talk about how people judge you in life, no matter who you are and blah, blah, blah. But something really stood out to me about this. There’s always competition, and there’s always people in your life that will want to be better than you or that will treat you differently for who you are.

I’m going to be honest, I never thought being 20 years old would be the way it truly is. I always found it to be like it is in the movies; Exciting, adventurous, and so much more. I’m not saying my whole life was built around how it was in the movies. Because if that were the case, my entire high school experience would be a lie, according to High School Musical. However, I used to admire movies about girls in college, and what they would do. I always thought, “That will be me one day.” But in reality, I’m far from it.

College, for me, is not what they show you in movies, or even TV, in some ways. With the dorms, the parties, the interesting courses.. it all seemed fun. But college for me, is more about education and making something of yourself. There class after class, homework, papers, exams. And when you add work into your daily routine, who has time for a social life? This is definitely not what I thought it was going to be.

But, I’m okay with it. I’ve accepted that college isn’t exactly all fun and games. It’s a challenge, but a good challenge. It’s a thrill ride to your future.

But, where does the “fitting in” come to play? Well, let’s look at what most kids in college do.. Partying. It’s the most known thing of all college students. And what do most of them do at parties? They drink. Whether they’re 18 or 24, mostly every college student seen at a party will drink alcohol. But me, no thank you. I’m not into that. It doesn’t interest me, nor will it ever. I’m not 21 years old yet, but I don’t even plan on going out at midnight, or any time during my birthday to a bar to have my first “legal drink”. That’s where I don’t fit in. At times I feel isolated from friends because all they ever want to do is go out to bars and drink. Although I cannot do so yet, even when I can, I wouldn’t want to. They believe that’s the only way to have a good time. Well, I’m here to tell you, you don’t need alcohol to have fun.

There are far more ways to have fun in your twenties than drinking. Sure, they may seem like things you can do in high school, but in your twenties, you have more leeway. You don’t have to go to mom & dad about everything. You can venture off on your own with friends, and go out on adventures with them without question. There’s the fun.

It may be weird that this is the first topic I chose to talk about, but with my birthday coming up soon, I felt it appropriate, for me. Sure, being 21 and “legal” is great, but it isn’t all there is to being in your twenties. And I’m 100% okay with that. Who says you have to go out to parties and bars every weekend? Why go out when you can stay home with your best friends, binge watching movies or shows on Netflix, while gorging yourself in your favorite snacks. Sure, that’s a little boring and cliche in today’s day and age, but it can still be something better than getting drunk every Saturday night, and waking up with a hangover, just in time for work Sunday.