Adulthood start of the journey – not just about age (thus some never really make it)

Is there a definitive marker for adulthood? I don’t think so. Some people never really make it. Did I make it? Some might say I was hardly a child/youth, others may still say I haven’t become a real adult.

My view is that I made it early and it had nothing to do with the car incident. I was always a responsible kid – perhaps too responsible (some gains and perhaps many losses) and I became an adult early. This is not a valuation really. More like a statement of do you transition from pupae to butterfly (or moth).

What’s my justification?

I had a habit for collecting the waifs and strays through my youth because I was sober enough (in control enough) to see who needed help. Often these strays ended up in my parent’s room in middle of night (missed the turn) and many threw up either in my car or my room/house. I was often the counselor/mediator rather than the counseled or mediated.

I still find I do this in a range of settings and “look after” those who might need help/support. I don’t ever remember being in a state in my whole life where I was not aware enough to be able to help myself (and others) in any situation (sad hey).

Yeh I have been drunk (but never stoned/drugged) but I knew it and I put myself to bed sometimes after taking remedial action on the way. I even did this on the night I fell asleep standing up in the toilet and woke up hugging the bowl with a graze mark on my forehead from colliding with the wall on the way down – go on you can all laugh it was funny really.

Have I always been a good adult – definitely not – but who is/needs to be?

So what does this kid’s transition to adulthood look like?

• Move through successively more complex jobs – supporting self and others
• Getting Master’s Degree and other post grad qualifications
• Playing sport at reasonable (but perhaps not highest possible) level and becoming coach (but again with perhaps more to offer).
• Moving from relationships to marriage to long-term defacto relationships
• Having children and acquiring children
• Building wealth
• Getting fatter and having higher cholesterol and trying to manage this etc

Was/is this a good transition or bad (or maybe just in between) – of course this depends on your view points.

Some of these transitions will be dealt with in other later “chapters” in this story.