The 12 Emotions of Simply Existing
I hate to break it to you, but they're all contradictory yet you can't live without any of them.
BEWILDERMENT when you realize “oh shit, I gotta be an adult” when you realize you’ll need to pay the bills and cook for yourself when you move out of the house at 23.
PRIDE when you land your first job with a decent paycheck and feel like just maybe, you’ve got enough to feel like you’re going to move on up in the world.
HEARTBROKEN when the person thought you was going to put a one carat diamond ring on your finger with a halo of smaller diamonds around it (you’re not a solitary diamond ring kinda gal) ends up breaking up with you on MSN Messenger. Even more so when you accidentally log into their Facebook account from your formerly shared laptop and find out they’ve been flirting with the coworker who was a little too charming when they gave you a latte to go.
EXASPERATED when you realize that you need to move back in with your parents temporarily because you’re broke. Spending all your money on your ex seemed like a good idea at the time. You BOTH needed groceries and a place to live, after all.
RELIEVED when you finally land a job with a salary higher than you’ve ever made in your life (though still entry-level) and it’s enough to get you out of the house. The caveat: it requires an overseas move. Thank goodness your employer is willing to pay for most of the moving costs.
SUSPICIOUS when you start dating someone else who is the definition of tall, dark and handsome. Damn it, you started flirting back when you’re exhausted when out with friends and weren't even trying to look cute.
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WITHDRAWN when almost a year later, you break up, for no other reason than the fact that you don’t believe in long-distance relationships, more so because you weren’t emotionally mature enough (though you pretend it was anything otherwise).
DISGUST when you realize the system is designed to fail the people you are trying to help, so you decide to leave your career teaching for good.
OVERWHELMED when you realize one day after moving to yet another country you’re isolated, missing “home,” and feel like you don’t know what you’re doing, quitting a perfectly stable career to attempt this thing called self-employment.
HELPLESS when your infant child stares at you in pain and you have no idea what to do to stop the crying. You learn later that they’re teething and that Orajel is a parent’s best kept secret. So are reruns of Mutt N Stuff.
OPTIMISTIC when you finally make a new friend, and loads more online ones who get it, who get that working from home is hard, that this thing called “freelance writing” doesn’t mean you can take naps anytime you want. And that hustling for the time being might be necessary as you’re trying your hardest to make enough to pay rent.
PROUD when you look back at the two decades of your life and realize, wow, you’ve come far. It wasn’t about the accolades, higher wages (though, let’s be honest, it helps) and other outward markers of success. It was the relationships you’ve built. The times when you kiss your spouse’s cheek before they turn around and go to sleep. The millions of moments when you and son laughed so hard at yet another failed cooking experiment gone wrong. Those are the times you’re most grateful for. To be able to be present, truly present, in the thick of it all.
What emotions would you add to this list? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!
It reads like 12 emotions of adulthood or simply "adulting". I bet our kids have way more other fun emotions!