Since my 21st birthday is this weekend, I figured this would be the perfect time to explain why turning 21 is the most important birthday of all time. As a kid, you can’t wait for your next birthday, strategically planning to make sure you have the perfect birthday party. That is, until you turn 21. Turning 21 is the last birthday that actually requires a celebration. I know what you’re thinking, “Yeah, because I can drink alcohol, legally!!” But there is so much more to it than just that.
Turning 21 is a right of passage to adulthood. All of a sudden, everyone starts taking you more seriously. The adults of the world now trust that you will behave yourself with alcohol in your system (which let’s be honest, doesn’t always happen, but that’s okay). I can remember being sixteen, hanging out with friends screaming the lyrics to Cory Smith’s “21", only dreaming of when that day would come and being able to do whatever I please. However, as Spiderman would say, “With great power comes great responsibility.” Turning 21 means you can now be charged and tried for ten times as many crimes as you could as a minor. So turning 21 is a big deal.
Being an adult now means that you can go wherever you would like. Growing up in the south only a few hours away from casinos, you always hear of both the wonderful stories of success and failure, winning and losing money. Well, hey there adult, you can do that now! Not only with casinos, but so many other things too. When turning 21, there comes a huge urge of wanderlust. Remember all of those places you couldn’t get into before? Well now you can. There are no more fake ID’s, or the fear of not getting in somewhere. Now, feel free to adventure wherever your pretty little heart desires.
I will say that one of the best, yet scariest parts of turning 21 is knowing that you've finally reached the stage of adulthood. We, as college students, have been able to get by, eating Ramen Noodles and Easy Mac every night, and knowing that it is all about to end is kind of….sad. I’m actually going to miss having to go to the bathroom to wash off my underage “X’s” on my hands, and hide my drinks for the rest of the night.
On the other hand, being 21 means graduating from college, finding a job, starting a family, and getting ready for a really long and eventful life. I cannot believe that soon I'll start worrying about what color my curtains are going to be, and how much mileage my car gets.
Truthfully, it might be a long while before I really care about all of the things adults are supposed to care about.
Until then, I‘m going to keep living my college life, eating Easy Mac and going to dirty college bars. Don’t worry, I’m not rushing anything. I’m going to stay young for as long as they’ll let me. Happy 21st Birthday to me.
