What’s nine plus ten?
October 6th, 2025
Photo: Libby Zufi
Writer: Grace Gingold
Editor: Isabelle Evans
Card me, I dare you.
21 isn’t just an age... It’s the death of rebelling, the art of creating fake stories about your fake ID, and the end of excuses. The time has come to grow up and face reality. The spunk of being young is gone, and sneaking around loses its thrill when there’s nothing left to hide. Drinking legally isn’t all that exciting when you’ve been doing it for years. Suddenly, everyone feels a little washed, a little old, a little empty. That’s how most people talk about 21. But let me spin it.
On my 21st birthday, I received a letter from my past self: the me of 2023. Fresh to Michigan, unsure if I’d ever find my place, praying I’d meet friends I loved and who loved me back. That letter reminded me of the rough college transition, my hope that I’d figure this new life out, and most importantly, the pride I’d have in myself if I “made it” to 21.
This age taught me birthdays aren’t meant to be perfect; they’re meant to remind us to pause and sit with the fact that another year is ahead, and that we’ve managed to move onward through whatever heartbreak, chaos, or joy the last 365 days held. They’re an invitation to ask: who am I becoming? Am I proud of where I’m going? We celebrate the day we’re born, and we mourn the day we will die. But what about everything in between?
Birthdays should be a reset button. A reminder to be present, to stop measuring life in milestones and start savoring it in moments, like late-night laughs, the best cup of coffee, and a perfect song on a morning run. And they are a reckoning, a construct that reminds you of your mortality and doubles as a meditation on existence.
The truth is, making it to any birthday is a prayer answered. No day is promised, and each birthday could be our last. Reaching my 21st wasn’t the death of risk-taking; it was the birth of an awareness, a sense of gratitude that I’d made it this far in life. I had a newfound feeling of pride for the woman I was becoming, and a strong appreciation for the fact that, despite it all, I was still here. The challenges that shake us are the same ones that shape us, carving out the truest version of who we will become in the future. Living fully, whether that means finding my favorite matcha store, soaking up the sun, going for a run, or laughing until my stomach hurts with people I love, has become my life goal.
So on your next birthday, yes, blow out the candles and take the photos, but also breathe. Look around at the people who showed up for you, and at the person you’ve become. You’ve made it this far, and that alone is worth celebrating. That’s what 21 has taught me <3
