Wow!  I just turned another year older and hopefully wiser and better on a holistic approach.  I used to deny my real age because I guess I was insecure or in disbelief that I turned a year older each year and yet I felt like I didn't grow old.  You know what I mean?

• As I age, I realized the real importance of our relationship with God and how imperfect and small I am, that I need to do more to glorify Him.
• As I am blessed, I have to give back and bless others in any way I can.
• I know that time is short and should be spent with people I love and who love me back sincerely, make me happy and add value to my life.  
• Since time is short, I should be spending it doing what I love doing, attaining my dreams, learning new skills, and improving on what I already am good at.
• I shouldn't be sweating the small stuff when it comes to my children.  I should know what deeds deserve a hard discipline and which ones should be corrected with conversations.
• With children, I should focus more on character-building and building their relationship with God than pushing them to achieve many academic or non-academic goals, because as parents we may just be pressuring them too much.
• I care less about people's approval (except at work of course, I need it for my performance appraisal.)  It's like Damn if I do. Damn if I don't.  So I'll do what makes me and my loved ones happy!  I've been applying this principle since I decided to call my first marriage quits.  People around me were saying nasty things about me for doing such.  But I was in the miserable situation, not them.  So I didn't pay attention to what people say and just went for it.  If I cared too much about what other people's opinion of me, I wouldn't have found my happiness now.
• It's not how many people or distant friends you know.  It's the number of quality friends who choose to stay with you, exert sincere efforts for you and genuinely care for you that really matter.  Sometimes, there are people in our lives that may be physically present when you are up there, but when you need support when you're down, they disappear.  They tire me, and I'm tired being tired.
• It's okay to say NO or to negotiate.  For me, dapat you know yourself enough to know your worth and your value.  Not everything that's offered should be accepted.  Let's say for a project, a high fee doesn't necessarily mean a good partnership.  Say NO to things or events that would not help you grow or bring value to your life.  Sometimes, when we cannot say no, we should learn how to negotiate.
• On financial literacy, I already realized the importance of insurances and investments a few years back.  I plan to continue saving and preparing for the future.  After mom's passing away, I was a lot more convinced that preparing for emergencies or life disasters is important.
• My work is just a part of my life and it's not my life.  I learned not to be too stressed with it, to go home to my family on time, to do what I can for the day and leave the others for the following days.  I don't believe in rendering overtime unless badly needed.  Our lives are outside work and time should be spent more on living our lives.
• I should be kinder, more forgiving, and more selfless not only to others, but to myself.  I shouldn't feel guilty for things that I forget to do to my husband, to my kids, or even to myself.  There's always another day for redemption.