November 2010

Happy Birthday!

I have been told by many adults older than I that their birthdays are just another day. When I was young, I was aghast at this idea. How could your birthday be just like any other? Now that I'm older, I have a better idea what they mean. It is an easy thing to do, once all those youthful parties and gift giving are over, to wonder what your birthday now means and to let that day go into the monotony of other days. It is easy to dread becoming older, to wish to put off the decline of our physical selves. And yet, I like birthdays.

I am now 31. My birthday was last Tuesday and every year I have to decide how I am going to treat the day. Thirty was a big year last year, I saw a lot of friends and enjoyed myself immensely. This year, thirty-one, for the first time, I was tempted by the "just another day" idea but I wasn't tempted for long. As a single adult, I have long since learned that if a holiday is going to be special, it is I and I alone who will make it so. If I want a party, it is usually I who has to plan it, though last year Cheryl hosted a wonderful breakfast and a bit of geo-caching (my very first outdoor event for my birthday, EVER). But a birthday, to be special, needs to be more than parties and gifts. What does a birthday mean? Beyond turning a year older, why celebrate our birthdays?

I think birthdays are still special as adults because we then each have a special day to honor who we are and to give family and friends the chance to celebrate us, to celebrate with us our lives and how precious they are. Birthdays are a way of loving ourselves and letting others love us as well. Birthdays are precious just as we are precious.

I can spend my birthday bemoaning the fact it's not like it was when I was a kid. There is no big family get together, no party hat with lime green fringe or a birthday cake I can stick my fingers into and lick off the frosting (my first birthday, and actually, at that time, it was my whole hand). Or, I can enjoy the day for the gifts that are there, make it special for myself, and to choose to have a good attitude, to delight in my own special day. It is a choice.

This year, God gave me his present first. It came in the form of a call from Kim asking if I was available to fill in for her at the elementary library where she and a friend work. At that school, I know the whole staff and as I had helped in the office the day before, I knew two other staff had the same birthday as mine. It's my favorite place to fill in at. Working in the library was great. I got to spend the day with a friend, heard her read a funny book to the kids as only she can, and Kim even dropped me off a birthday latte. God gives the best birthday presents! He gave me the job I hadn't even hoped to have.

If we are to make our birthday specials, we have to enjoy the little things, the time with a friend, a latte, fellow birthday buddies, calls from family. By the evening, I was grinning. Not only did I have a great day, but both my parents had called and sang me their renditions of "Happy Birthday" and my sisters had called as well. My birthday is still special to them which helps keep it special to me.

Don't let your birthday just be another day. Even if it's a small thing, make it special and enjoy the moment. Let others love and celebrate you; celebrate yourself. Happy birthday!

Last Updated: 12/30/2011