One of the hardest things about celebrating ourselves is that we often believe celebration has to be earned. Not with effort. Not with growth. But through perfection.

Somewhere along the way, many of us were handed a script: work hard, find your person, get married, have children, and live happily ever after. They’re beautiful milestones, and they absolutely deserve celebrating…What happens to the people who helped build our lives before our lives got bigger?

I had reached an age where the only time my friends and I celebrated each other was when someone got married or had a baby. There had to be more to celebrate.