I also have a really hard time relating to the the whole financial independence / retire early crowd. I think I'd rather take the chance on growing as much as I can now so that I can be the wise person I want to be when I'm much older. Prioritizing experiences rather than aggressive saving. I figure the worst case is that I'm old living an extremely frugal life in a tiny place in the middle of nowhere Japan (where I currently live) reading books and playing all the games I bought when I was young, happily content with a life fully lived.

I recently went on a very personal international trip that wiped all my savings. I was able to reconnect with my culture and I made two friends who I cherish so much. The kind of friends that I would drop everything to help. I didn't have to go on these trips, I could have kept saving. But I don't regret that experience at all and it changed me immensely.