Turning 50 (not 30!)
For some reason, Facebook has decided to list my birth year as 1988 instead of 1968. No, it’s not an April Fools’ joke. It’s just another example of Facebook’s intrusion into our privacy. You see, I never give out my real birthday online, and I never filled out this portion of my profile, so the company must have picked it up from somewhere else, and decided to fill in the missing information on my behalf. Disturbing, though not surprising, given recent revelations.
There was a time when I would have gladly pretended to be 30 instead of having just celebrated my 50th. And I’ll admit, it hasn’t been easy to embrace “growing up.” But my dear friend Bari helped me tremendously. Last year, on my 49th birthday, as I was dreading the big five-oh, she pointed out that I was more physically fit, emotionally fulfilled, and professionally successful than I had been 20 years ago. So why would I want to go back? And you know what? She was right! At that moment, I made the conscious decision to look ahead to 50 with excitement, not dread. I gave myself an entire year to prepare, and I planned a series of fun and adventurous activities (cat-skiing; skydiving) with friends and family so when my actual birthday rolled around, I really looked forward to it. I’ve also been very moved by my girlfriends who have welcomed me to this milestone, and have told me that it only gets better from here. So far, 50 feels GREAT!
- Dr. Jessica Wu
