Getting Older and Wearing Masks...

Well, my good friend Ern is 30 today. He's the fourth of our little longtime friend circle to get there. I being the eldest wanted to be sure to mention this great occasion. I also wanted to let him in on a secret. It's not that old man. It seems so because most of us our age and a little older really didn't expect to make it to 30. I remember thinking nuclear war would get us all before I was 20. What a strange and horrible thing to have to grow up thinking. Personally, that is a big reason I think I've always thought 30 is old. Well, that and the fact my siblings and the teens at church tell me it's old...

Hey, check out my Pastor here. He's a new blogger and has some really good stuff to read. His latest post about school dances is a really good one. I can speak to one the things he said. He mentioned telling his son that there is as much pressure or maybe more on the popular kids. I was (fortunately or unfortunately, depending how you look at it) one those kids. The pressure was huge especially on up into High School. Maintaining your popularity, rank, rep, etc. could be very tough. It required a lot of work. With no anonymity, you were constantly on your toes making sure you didn't mess up and 'lose who you were'. Funny thing is, a lot of times that did mean losing who you were. You ended up acting or looking like something you weren't. Now don't misunderstand, I wasn't a wild child and peer pressure toward sex, drugs, drinking, and all those other things never got to me. They never became part of my high school experience like so many others trying to fit in. But at times my personality would take some twists and turns away from the real me. As adults, I think we still may have some of the same twists and turns. I mean, who wants to let everyone know ________ about them?