Lifestyle

February 24, 2018

Lemonade & Our 20’s

They say that your 20’s are some of the best years of your life. It’s a time of trial and error and discovery of one’s self. In my teen years, I had dreamt up every future moment of my life and what my wonderful 20’s would consist of. Yet, as most stories go, things change and life hands you some lemons.

Figuring It Out

In the beginning of my 20’s I dropped out of my second year in college, had no job and a car that would die in the middle of the road if I pushed too hard on the brakes. I moved back home after finally gaining the courage to tell my mom that I had dropped out and didn’t plan on going back. Now telling my mom, a woman who has received almost every degree known to man, was not an easy thing.  I was extremely disappointed not only letting myself down but for letting her down. I had no idea what I wanted from life and I was losing my identity, spiraling into a world of the unknown.

Fast forward to my mid 20’s, a college graduate with not one, but two degrees, a full-time job, a part-time job teaching dance and a brand new car. My career progressing and opportunities pouring in, but that as it may, my personal life was a different story. I’m sure you can relate to a relationship where you thought one thing in the beginning only to reconsider everything. Perhaps, the perfect “lemon” to your lemonade. That’s exactly what happened, a bright yellow “lemon” appeared in my life. Yet, after cutting into the lemon, I realized that the inside was very different from the shiny outside that had mesmerized me before. I had to come to terms that no matter how much I tried to nourish the lemon, my efforts changed nothing. Sometimes in life, you have to walk away from a “sour” situation.

Hello 30’s!

These last couple of years I have spent a tremendous amount of reflecting and soul-searching. My biggest obstacle to overcome and face, was the person staring back at me every morning, myself. These past two years I learned that in order for me to love others I had to love myself. I know this may sound cliche, but it is 100% necessary for me and the life I want. It started off small by going on hikes and escaping into nature and then progressed to accomplishing things that are out of my comfort zone. Entering into my 30’s I’m excited, motivated and above all, ready. Ready, for life’s lemons.

Lemons: Situations

We’re handed “lemons” unexpectedly throughout our lives. They’ll appear when you least expect it and it’s how you handle them that will define the situation. You have to handle lemons with caution or you may get stung, but with patience, care, you’ll get a sweet result. Focus on the negative effects of these situations then the negativity will continue in your life. However, if you examine the unexpected situation and focus on the possible benefits, then you can turn that sour situation into something sweet.

Sugar: Actions

Too much sugar (negative actions) make lemonade sour and situations will worsen. If you put the perfect pinch of sugar (positive actions) you will get a refreshing lemonade. I’ve learned that if you put more energy into someone else than they do themselves they will drain your soul. Often times we feel that if we focus all our attention on a situation that it will have to get better. However, if we only focus on that one situation we aren’t paying attention to the other things going on in our lives, other aspects may fall.

Ice: Strong Support System

If the ice (the support system) melts, then you just have watery lemonade, a watery situation. I’m a strong believer that the people around you can make or break you. I know that when I’m at my worst in life, I needed to take a look at the people I surround myself with. Having realized that my support system was slowly falling apart or melting, I had to make a change. Much like when you replenish the ice in your lemonade, you have to pay attention to your support system. Yes, you can count on them being there for you but don’t take them for granted.

With this being the last year of my 20’s I’ve been able to take all those lemons and make some pretty tasty lemonade, and I plan on keeping that recipe close to me.

And adding a splash of vodka here and there!

  1. wanderlostsoulsphotography says:

    Amazing blog post! I loved your analogy and it’s something that will stick with me.

  2. kanishka says:

    It is so true when you have to make the right decisions for yourself and be responsible. Taking bad decisions like letting a person spoil your precious moments can be harmful. I faced something similar and had to walk away (still work in progress) I love how you put together this post keeping lemonade as your instance! Indeed we need to start making really balanced lemonade for ourselves with all the lemons in our life hehe.

  3. kjs11j says:

    This is such a cute concept for a post! I totally feel you on the making responsible decisions part – it’s easy to do the right thing when you’re younger and everyone just tells you exactly what to do.

  4. choosingbalanceblog says:

    Love this analogy! 20s are hard, but it is such a growing and developing time of life!

  5. amanda.onelittlelife says:

    This was a great analogy – thanks very much!

  6. Chastity says:

    Your 20’s are the wonder years of finding out who and what you want to do. You have accomplished a lot way before 30 so enjoy it and that vodka with lemon

  7. I love your concept of writing. Great blog post…keep up the good work!

  8. Suanlian Tangpua says:

    I love your concept of writing. Great blog post…keep up the good work!

  9. daydreamingpink says:

    I really like how you made this analogy between life and lemonade. It’s great advice and really well written! Being in my early 30’s now, I wish I had had an article like this in my 20’s. Very eye opening.

  10. Denise says:

    YES, the 20’s will kick your butt if you let them! Thanks for the reminder to turn lemons into lemonade 🙂
    Denise // TheElleAesthetic.com

  11. You’ve drawn such a brilliant comparison between the ingredients of a lemonade and life! And, like you said if the proportions go wrong, the recipe doesn’t work.

  12. Layan Bee says:

    I looove how you broke this down like an actual lemonade recipe, so cute and smart! its so hard to look on the bright side sometimes, its reminders like this that keep us going

  13. FS Page says:

    Wow. That’s such a nice take to life. I like the way you have compared different moods and stages of life to the ingredients of a lemonade. It require tremendous self interrogation to face all the obstacles in life. Thanks for sharing this unique concept of living life.

  14. Great analogy. I just turned 30 and overall I’m happy with my 20’s but I wish I had worked a bit more on my goals. Time goes by so quickly. 🙂

  15. Parul says:

    I love this post and how you’ve used the lemonade analogy. 20s were definitely the most difficult years but now that I look back, also some of the best years of my life so far.

  16. Ivie Ndep says:

    Love this write up!

  17. Katherine says:

    I love the analogy with this post and it’s such an inspiring read! So many great life lessons wrapped into one big one. <3

  18. Katherine says:

    I love the analogy in this post! So many life lessons wrapped up into one big one. <3

  19. taylermorrell says:

    Love the analogy. The twenties are definitely formative years.

  20. sweetbasilthyme says:

    Love the analogy! I’m in my mid twenties now and I’ve definitely felt the pressure to achieve certain goals that everyone is ‘suppose’ to achieve by this age- but life isn’t a one size fits all!

  21. Becky says:

    I love your comparison with sugar and ice in addition to just turning lemons into lemonade. I’m 29 and I turn 30 next month. I can say that my life is completely different than when I envisioned it at 19 – and while it’s not all positive, I’ve been able to take things that didn’t seem great at first and turn them into very good things.

  22. Michelle Soo says:

    I love the metaphor! Thank you 🙂 The twenties are a sweet, sour and tart time of life to be sure.

  23. Leo says:

    I love this so much. The analogy works really well 🙂 so cute. !1

  24. annemerrill says:

    I’ve never thought about it that way. Thank you for sharing this, as I’ve just begun my 20s and will approach them with this advice and thought!

  25. Garrile Blog says:

    huge fan of lemonade over here! Absolutely enjoyed the way you put things! Real fun, a super cool spin!

  26. This is such a cute post! I love the way that you broke down how you’ve compared life in your 20’s to a glass of lemonade. You’ve processed the equation in a simply perfect way; Your glass of lemonade (life) can be sweet or sour depending on how you are with your situations, actions, and support system.

    Thanks for the cute read!

    Best,

    Idora
    http://www.ajournalofstories.com

  27. Nay @ beautyaddictmama says:

    This is a great post eithban awesome analogy. I’m in my mid-thirties and and my life isn’t where I’d like it to be due to divorce etc… but I love the way you’ve explained how to pick myself up. Thank you.

  28. Shubhada Bhide says:

    This is such a great post about Decisions and Responsibility. I really like your analogy for this.

  29. What an amazing way to reflect and then share with us your readers! I needed to read that right now, not for the twenties part, I’m over 50 but, for the positiveness of the article. Thank-you for the lift and the reminder to beware of the negative Nancy’s in our lives.

  30. I love your analogy! I think it was a year ago that I did a similar blog post, although I used the computer keyboard to compare with life situations. I agree that life has its share of lemons and it is up to us to find a way to work around those “lemons.”

  31. trinaellen says:

    I love this idea of documenting your story! And congrats on the 2 degrees, it shows how much life can change quickly.

  32. When live gives you lemons, make some spiked lemonade. But don’t make it too strong or you might miss the signs that your lemons are bad.

  33. What great metaphors for a wonderful time in your life. There are definitely times when the sour comes up, but you can definitely deal with them thanks to a little sugar and ice.

  34. I really the analogy and I really love your post about decisions glad that you share this

  35. Great Analogy! when life gives you lemons…

  36. I never thought of lemonade being so relatable to life! I love how you mapped out a life application in this great post! I enjoyed reading your thoughts!

  37. Love your thoughts on this!

  38. Payton says:

    Great content! Very creative!

  39. aerialalex says:

    Great read. Thanks for posting.

  40. debrahmDebrah says:

    It’s great to see a life that starts out with lots of indecision and confusion, but you got it together! Great for you! And your lemonade analogy! Terrific!

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