Twenty-Six Things I’ve Learned In Twenty-Six Years.

27, The words roll off my tongue with an unexpected softness. I say it, again and again, waiting for the numbers to pierce my tongue, waiting for tiny fear embedded shrapnel to scratch my throat, stop me from speaking. But it doesn’t happen. Instead, twenty-seven feels like Honey in my mouth, sweet, rich warm embracing amber that drips slowly, softly. It feels… welcoming. 

I turn a whole twenty-seven next week. Everyone keeps asking me how it feels to be solidly in my late twenties, and I usually reply with a far-away smile and say that I’m blessed to have reached this age. As a teenager I always associated 27 with the greats who passed away too soon; Jimi Hendrix, Curt Cobain, Amy Winehouse and more, so I suppose you could understand if I had any apprehension heading towards my late twenties. But all throughout August, I kept getting signs that this last quarter of the year, and indeed this new age would be reckless in its blessings, wonders, and beauty – and I claim it with eyes, heart, and soul wide open, ready to step into anything I’ve been called into. I could write and write about the significance of 27, but then I wouldn’t have anything to post on my actual 27th birthday next week so without any further ado, here are twenty-six things I’ve learned over my twenty-six years of life…

1. Things do indeed get better with time. Wine, heartbreak, cheese (I think?). So just ride that season until the ice of your winter begins to thaw and the pink blossoming buds of your spring begin to emerge, signaling a change.

2. Always, always, always invest in a good quality pair of boots and a warm coat for Winter. Fast Fashion will not keep you warm!

3. Save at least 1/3 of your paycheck if at all possible. This will be your saving grace in case anything happens that you weren’t planning for. (This helped me a lot when I lost my job!).

4. Other women are not your competition and never will be. Focus on your own road without looking left or right.

5. Investing time, love and warmth into friendships really pays off and the reward is well… friends that become family.

6. Learn to self-evaluate no matter how hard it is. Call yourself out before other people do, I’ve seen many a person be their own undoing…

7. Carry a reusable coffee cup and a reusable water bottle with you at all times. 

8. As you get older, there will be things you won’t be able to eat anymore. *sigh* goodbye dairy (lol jk I eat cheese then cry on the toilet more often than not.

9. Dating / getting a partner isn’t the be all and end all of life. Just enjoy the ride, relationship (or not) does not determine your worth.

10. Always put a book in your bag. It makes commuting actually enjoyable to a degree when you get lost in a book.

11. Invest in the perfect red lipstick for your face, skin tone and skin type. Red lipstick on an off day can honestly turn the whole ship around.

12. Be completely yourself in all capacities, at a job interview, on a date, with friends, with family. Don’t make yourself smaller or bigger, just be you.

13. Mind. Your. Business. It will save you a lot of wahala (Yoruba word for ‘trouble’).

14. Be careful who you associate yourself with. Be kind, but keep your eyes open and your ears to the ground. Not everyone will be happy when you prosper – remove these people with a quickness. Who you surround yourself with is who you become.

15. With age, you will learn to appreciate your parent’s monumental wisdom, their behavioral quirks, why they are the way they are and it’ll soften your heart.

16. Invest in your hobbies or your side hustles alongside your main career goals, eventually, these may diverge into one, and even if they don’t, it’ll keep you thinking, creating, doing in a different capacity. My blog is a testament to that I suppose.

17. Faith will take you to places you could only imagine. Even if you’re non-religious, manifestation, speaking things into existence, projecting good energy, it is all more important than we give credit to.

18. Men will break your heart, and it will feel like you are quite literally dying. But you will survive and you will thrive after. Try to hold no anger, resentment or sadness towards the past as it’ll only hinder you. Look forward with expectation.

19. Supporting your friends is paramount. If they run a business, be a customer. If they’ve posted sponsored content, interact with it. If they’ve dropped fire music, listen to it. If they’ve written pieces, read it and share it with your own audience. 

20. Always, always, always, listen to others points of views during disagreements and understand where they’re coming from (discernment is key and this should be within reason). Apologising if something has been misread, or taken the wrong way. 

21. Drink water and look after your skin. It is the only skin you’ll ever have.

22. Let people know how much you appreciate them whenever you can. Either verbally or through their preferred love language.

23. Say yes to the uncomfortable but don’t overwhelm yourself with too much. Balance is key, but the key to growth is stepping out into the unknown and taking risks.

24. Be careful with what you use your mouth to say, it always, always, always comes back to bite, and the bite will be painful.

25. Getting older is a blessing and something to be celebrated. As I’ve grown older there are people who I’ve lost along the way to cancer, suicide, health issues and more. I try to take each day I’m alive as a wonderful gift and not something to take for granted or take lightly.

26. Learning to love yourself will be one of the most important things you will ever do. It will be the catalyst for immeasurable exciting growth. So go forth, look at yourself naked in a mirror, trace your round belly, the light stretch marks draped across your hips and butt, the sag of your breasts and the thickness of your thighs. Drink it all in. You. Were. Wonderfully. And. Fearfully. Made. Bask in it all and always remember this.

WHAT I WORE

BLOUSE c/o & other stories | JEANS c/o & other stories | BAG – vintage | SHOES – zara

{photography by Yossy Akinsanya}

Sade

xo