I was wearing a complimentary sombrero and eating free ice cream the day I turned 18.

The joy and excitement that came from something as simple as free dessert and a cool-looking Chevys Fresh Mex sombrero made me question that I was legally an adult.

When I think of being an adult, I think of my parents.

They are people who understand what it means to operate life in a mature and sensible way.

They appreciate different perspectives, have patience to see both sides in a disagreement and admit to their own wrongdoings.

As I draw closer to turning 21, I recall moments when I feel grown-up and when I still revel in adolescence.

In a day I managed to apply for an internship, call the Kia dealership to fix my car and actually found joy in taking a trip to WinCo. The next day rolled around and was spent lying in bed eating a mountainous bowl of Frosted Flakes while watching Netflix for hours.

I’m not sure when this adulthood thing will happen, but developing an understanding of it is the first step.

Regardless of age, I know it comes with responsibility, maturity and experience.

I’m responsible for paying rent, getting good grades and keeping myself healthy and well.

I’m mature in ways that make me a dependable and honest person.

I’ve experienced world travels, failure, success and gone through the loss of close ones.

An adult carries a certain amount of what my dad refers to as “emotional intelligence,” or “EQ.” EQ comes with the ability to self-analyze, which is what I feel I’m doing in writing these columns.

The metamorphosis of a young person to grown-up isn’t going to magically come when the clock strikes twelve on an 18th or 21st birthday.

So, what I’ve decided is that I’m in my early stages of adulthood. I’m still in college. I have my own responsibilities and feel quite mature, but adulthood — I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it.

Julianna Eveland can be reached at [email protected] or @janeca12 on Twitter.