Has anyone ever called you an “old soul”? It’s a phrase I often hear when people describe me and it initially confused me. Do I look like an old lady? Do I sound old fashion?

Being called an “old soul” is a lot more than what I thought it would be. I believe that it characterizes my nature beautifully and I have really grown to love the phrase and in that way, to love myself. However, I use to feel very alone as an old soul swimming in a sea of my peers who act their age. But after realizing the many strengths I have as an old soul, I am passionate about who I am and those who also act beyond their years.

Old souls feel like they don’t truly belong in their generation of peers. We tend to be behind on the trends but comfortable in our classic styles. Old souls rarely keep up with modern music and can barely discern between the all too similar artists on the radio. Instead, we opt for the classics who made music before we were even born. From Frank Sinatra to Bruce Springsteen, we have found our favorite songs from decades ago that our friends could never truly appreciate.

Have you ever called some one “my dear” or used the phrase “old sport” like Gatsby? These lovely phrases are ones that are timeless to the old souls. These allow us to personalize our attention to anyone with whom we converse. Old souls make the extra effort to really engage with new people because we really want to get people on a personal level. We don’t like small talk of the weather, but rather strong political debate or deep thinking questions. No matter what the conversation is, we are always polite whether or not we agree because it is just the right thing to treat people.

Speaking of conversations, those who are young but old at heart tend to feel more comfortable talking to adults than there own peers. It’s a tricky situation because we tend to relate better to those who are more mature than our contemporaries. Conversations are hard with our peers because we are not entertained by petty drama nor are we excited by modern trends. It makes it challenging to make friends in school, but our maturity adds to our advantages of earning the respect of adults and applying for jobs! And once you make friends with other old souls, you are forever loyal to your kindred spirits.

While we use technology well, we are pretty bad at technological communication. We send wordy emails like letters to distant friends. Our IMs or Facebook messages are more like paragraphs with proper grammar. Also, we will never understand texting etiquette. What is with waiting three days to text someone you find cute? Why do people look so deeply into the meaning behind the emojis you send? You often want to send personalized letters, but nowadays that seems so dated that people would look too deeply into it’s meaning. Its just so much easier to talk with people face to face.

But as much as we love talking to people, (or attempting to communicate through all the various technologies) we genuinely love to be alone. We appreciate solitude as a way to be calm and to find our thoughts. Old souls can be very introspective and thoughtful which means that quiet time is a way in which we can thrive. A Saturday night drinking cheap beer at a loud party is great, but we are also content curled up with a book and a glass of Merlot.

I find being old at heart has been a blessing and a curse. There are days that I wish I can find joy in immaturity or that my friends can age up to me because even when surrounded by peers you can feel very alone. But then I start to think about how much I love being independent and thoughtful, and I remember why I love the things that make me different.

So to any other old souls swimming in this fish bowl of a world, enjoy your unique journey- and I hope we meet each other some day soon.