20. Pressure to Fit the Timeline
In society, it feels like an unspoken rule to meet deadlines. To follow the timeline that our parents and our grandparents, and the rest of our ancestors have walked. That we have to graduate by a certain age, get ahead in our careers, and then find the one and get married and have kids. While no one voices these things, to me, it has always been known. I am a year behind graduating compared to the people I graduated high school with, and because of this, I feel like I'm failing. I am reading a book that pointed this out; she and her husband got divorced, and she is now 35 and feels like she no longer fits on the timeline. Her friends are all happily married and have kids, and she is back to being single and wanting to restart her career. This book has made me realize that there really is no timeline. You can go back to college at 35 or any age. You can meet the love of your life and get married two weeks later. You can also choose not to get married or to not have kids. You don't have to fit the unspoken societal expectations that we are quietly pressured by. There is no timeline; whatever line you walk and work through is the right one. I'm not sure if this should fit into the portfolio, but I think it works for me because it's been a big concept in my life lately.










