At my thirtieth birthday party, I drank a shield boss full of red wine (still attached to the shield) and a mate of mine asked me what I'd learned. Quite apart from 'not doing that again', I'd learned that I was on top of my world - utterly in control.

Which, shortly afterwards, turned out to be utter bollocks - as the revelation hit me that the world was a Very Big Place.

At forty, if the same mate asked me the same question, my answer would be: -

That there's still everything to learn.
That real friends are the most important things in the world.
That your child grows up far too fast.
That 'Carpe Diem' is more true than ever.
That the 'Shield Boss Challenge' is still a fucking stupid thing to do.

Everything is in flux, no future is set in stone - and that's as it should be. The bad times always pass; you never know when you will meet someone astonishing. Take nothing and no-one for granted, appreciate joy, love while you can...  and never take anything handed to you in a West Croydon pub.

Forty is just a number - and not all that scary really.

Bring it on!!