Friday, August 13th, 2010
I’m headed back for my senior year of college in just under two weeks. What’s that all about? I’m going to get all cliche and say that it feels like it was only yesterday I was graduating from high school. Time flies, and all that. It’s just unsettling.
Every once in a while I remember what it felt like to be an 8 year-old meeting someone in college. Those guys were so old! They were so awesome – they seemed grown up, mature, like they had their shit down. But now I’m that guy – I’m 20 – and I don’t feel like I have my shit handled at all. Actually, I feel less like I’ve got a handle on things than I did when I was 8. Maybe I’m totally wrong here, but I get the feeling that as you get older that feeling doesn’t necessarily go away. There are always new experiences that threaten to break apart your axis mundi and disrupt the center of your world.
Or maybe at some point we just settle into the people we think we’re supposed to be, anchoring ourselves to some weird static concept of settling. I sure hope not. But that’s not the point.
I think it started in middle school – as 8th graders we started looking at the 6th graders and said “Man, they get shorter and shorter every year.” And at some point, when I was in high school, I found myself wondering when 8th graders started getting shorter. “Were we that small? That young? That can’t be possible.”
I don’t want to get all Thorton Wilder and start saying “Carpe Diem,” all the time, but sometimes you just gotta ask yourself – when did the hell did I get older?
And with that, here’s a smattering of my favorite music that makes me feel like I’m that 8 year-old dreaming of how awesome being grown up will be.
And yes, all of these are terribly cheesy, but that’s what I grew up with. Deal, I’m having a moment.
Sixpence None The Richer – Kiss Me
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Eagle Eye Cherry – Save Tonight
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Blink 182 – What’s My Age Again?
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The Streets – Could Well Be In
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I spent about two minutes thinking about this list, leave yours in the comments and I’ll post ‘em up.
Comments ( 2 )
Jess Aug 13 10 at 10:33 pmWow. Those songs definitely bring me back. You picked some great ones!
There are always new experiences that threaten to break apart your axis mundi and disrupt the center of your world.
Yup. Just wait until right after graduation. Scary stuff. Also, five points for the use of “axis mundi” in a blog post.
Enjoy senior year! And if you ever find yourself looking to visit Columbus, you’ve got a place to crash.
Thatcher Aug 14 10 at 12:18 amGreat post man. And picture. But yeah I totally agree with you about all the shit involved with growing older. I think you feel in control of things at 8 because nothing’s expected of you and you don’t expect anything of the world. I really had no fear of true consequences, or of my life ending up nowhere, until late teens. Then everything hit me and sometimes it is hard to handle. Ignorance truly is bliss, but that wouldn’t be any fun would it? Feeling is living as they say. If they say that. If they don’t, I do.
And if I completely missed the point, that there’s my moment.