40s are as hard as any other decade, I suppose, but when you get to this age you should know yourself pretty well by now. I don't expect that I'll ever change into a domestic goddess, that clothes won't lie around the floor, that I'll become less emotional and more driven, that I won't cry when people win a bunch of money on a game show (heheeee...I'm just so damn happy for them), that I'll be a great friend and daughter and sister who remembers to send cards or pick up the phone....
The beauty of it I've found myself saying "sure, I can work on improving things and doing better, but I am just human me. I'm not human him or human her...I'm just me." Struggling along as we all do, but liking myself much better than I did when I was so much younger.
It's empowering!