There are firsts that we will never forget. Our first love, first day of college, even our first car accident. We take these firsts and talk about them, brag about them, and create content on social media about them to share and remember for ourselves. But why are our firsts so important to us? Our firsts often mark a developmental milestone and can act as a stepping stone into the next stage of our life. From our very first breath after birth to our death, we are taking firsts. Here are just some of the many significant firsts that we experience throughout our lifetime.
- Romantic Firsts
-
Movies showing a stereotypically perfect and romantic relationship or first kiss with an added kick of their heel, as well as opinions from surrounding society creates a large focus and importance on our romantic firsts. So many of our firsts that we partake in, such as our first kiss, are surrounded by emotions and anxiety. We ideally want our first of anything (especially something like a first kiss) to be “good” adding pressure and often making an anxious event that’s hard to forget.
- Academic Firsts
-
Your first day of elementary school, middle school, high school, and college all symbolize a new chapter in your life. Your first college exam or finals week, even your first failed exam will stick with you in your memory. Whether it’s because you’re growing older or wiser, these landmarks are always remembered since education plays such a big role in shaping who we are as people.
- Travel Firsts
-
Do you remember the first time visiting a city? A landmark? A new state? Or traveling out of the country? Those who cherish experiences and traveling remember the feeling they had before and during their first plane ride, or the first stamp they got in their passport while traveling outside of the country because it is something they love to do.
- Moving Firsts
-
Your first childhood home, first dorm, first apartment, and first home of your own you’ll remember and cherish for the memories, good and bad, that you made there. Within our moving firsts, we experience different firsts throughout each phase of life. Our first pet in our first childhood home. Our first fight with our roommate in our first dorm away from family. The first time stepping into your apartment where you’ll grow as a young adult, and into our first home that we get to love and make our own.
- Last Firsts
-
Our last firsts, such as our last first day of school or last first date, symbolize a time of growing up and moving onto other larger and more significant firsts.
Our first often form who we are, how we think, and how we act. That’s why our firsts are so significant and important, no matter how big or how small.