The one about turning a year wiser and learning about love

Today I turned 34. I don’t know what that age means. 34. I mean, it’s just a number.
When you turn 13, you’re a teenager. When you turn 16 you’re allowed to start learning how to drive and to have sex. When you turn 18 you’re allowed to vote, your parents don’t have the same obligations to look after you anymore and you’re allowed to drink alcohol. On paper, you are now an adult. But you really aren’t. You’re not even an adult two years later when you turn 20, move out and are allowed to drink liquor. Even if you think you are as much of an adult as you could possibly be. What about when you turn 25? I’d say close, but no guitar. But maybe at 34?
I think I feel comfortable with the adult title now. I’m not sure if that happened when I turned 30. I don’t think I truly felt like an adult when I married my wife. I actually think it happened when I first held my son. And he’s turning 3 as I turn 34. So I guess 34 means; adult, parent, wife. And I have thought that 34 is no big deal, but it kind of is. Taste the words; parent and wife. Pretty big if you ask me. And even if I’m not sure that I’m more of a parent or wife than I was when I turned 33, I do know that I am a whole year wiser today.
What have I learned this last year? Mostly things about myself, about how I’m put together and function. Some things about being a human in relation to other humans. A lot about the scary responsibilities that comes with parenthood. Ever thought about how much we as parents affect and shape our children right from the start? How easily we can fuck them up if we don’t do our very best? Or even if we do indeed do our very best? If you haven’t already, I suggest maybe you don’t. It’s pretty terrifying.
And I have learned a lot about love over the past year. About what it does to you to love someone unconditionally. So to end this post with warm and fussy feelings, I share with you some images of a lovely couple I got to photograph last year. Henning and Inge are super cute together, and I hope you all like the images! Make sure to press the like button if you do, it actually makes a difference to me. And hit the subscribe button if you aren’t already one of my followers. I wish you all the very best of days!