Every year we went through the same exchange. She'd tell me what happened 15…20…24 years ago today. She'd tell me how becoming a mother gave her life meaning…and finally that I was born on the "hottest damn day of the year." I'm not sure how that last bit first came out, but it became tradition. My mom's words—all of them—were something I looked forward to every August 31st. She made me feel celebrated in a way only a mother can.

I am 30 years old today, and I hear echos of her still.

So, 30. I really don't know where the last 10 years went, and I certainly don't know where the next 10 are going. I can tell you one thing for sure though: I am going to appreciate everything. If I learned one thing in my 20s, it was how to go on…how to find the lightness even when everything is heavy. There's always some good going on somewhere if you open your eyes to it.

Life is going to go the way life is going to go no matter how I react to it…I might as well be happy.