In our society, we don’t really have a “coming of age.” There’s no one event or day when you begin as a child with no experience or knowledge, and come out as an adult with the skills you need to survive in this harsh world.
In fact, we make it much more difficult because we also throw around this term, “young adult.” Can those two words really go together?!
Here are a few hints that will help you determine if you’ve reached a point in your life when you can comfortable call yourself a grown-up.
Hint 1: The microwave is not your appliance of choice when it comes to cooking meals.
Hint 2: You actually have a bed frame rather than a mattress on the floor.
Hint 3: You own clothes that can’t be dried in the dryer.
Hint 4: Your parents don’t pay your bills.
Hint 5: “Home” is what you call the place where all your stuff is, not what you call the place where your parents live (but don't actually tell your parents that).
Hint 6: You don’t eat cheese by itself (i.e. you eat cheese with wine, grapes, crackers or similar partner).
Hint 7: You shop at stores because you like them, not because it’s all you can afford.
Hint 8: You don’t remember the last time you used the word “dude.”
Hint 9: You can pick up the phone and call someone if need be (without having to write out a scripted conversation to read from).
Hint 10: You read books for fun.
Hint 11: You don’t use the word bored (instead you cherish your relaxation time).
Hint 12: Your email account contains no combination of the words “princess,” “gurlll,” “hunk,” “hottie” or words of that nature. It also doesn’t contain unnecessary repetition of letters (i.e. “babbbbbygirl257”)
Hint 13: You actually have an email address that’s not associated with a school (unless you work at a school of course).
Hint 14: There’s more than just beer in your fridge.
Hint 15: You refer to yourself as an adult, not a grown-up.
So next time it becomes a bit hazy, refer back to this fantastic list of hints to remind yourself that you are not, in fact, a grown-up.
