Coming of Age

I’m young, 27 going on 28. The SuperSpade is young, 4 going on 5.

We grow, age, evolve and mature on an unescapable path forward. That’s true for us as people and for what we create in our lives.

Brandon and I started The SuperSpade a few months after we graduated from the University of Michigan, and our 5-year reunion is upon us. That became real to me when I was honored to represent my class at Commencement this year (no, I didn’t get to meet the President). While I’m not one to talk a lot about age because I don’t find it a particularly useful construct most of the time, growth and development are things that I often contemplate in moments of self and shared reflection.

• What’s different about me today than 5 years ago?
• Who’s still in my life now that was then? Who isn’t?
• How has my worldview evolved?

My wife and I talk about this a lot, in the context of how life’s expectations change as we grow older. That can be both funny and frustrating, both predictable and stupefying, all at the same time. Nevertheless, it’s true.

As a 27-year-old, there are things that are expected of me that were not when I was 22. Going to a bar and seeing a sloppy drunk 35-year-old man is as sad as it is disgusting. We’ve all been there. We’ve all seen it. For some, we were the ones shaking our heads in shame. For others, we were the ones with the hangover the next morning. If you’re like me, you shed tears of laughter and sorrow.

In honor of the coming 5 year anniversary of The SuperSpade and the 5 year anniversary of my graduation, I’d like to offer 5 Maturity Musts that are required as we come of age.