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On the Eve of A Birthday

October 4, 2017 /

Tomorrow is my birthday.  Again.  They sure do come fast and furious now – like contractions.  And yet, I still get a little secret thrill from them although I would not admit that out loud to anybody.  Nevertheless, like a child, I will probably have a delighted feeling inside all day.  I’m too adult (or too old) to expect presents and cake but what I’ve discovered through the years is that I need neither to feel loved on my day.

I recall nearly all my birthdays.  Shout out an age and I could probably tell you how I celebrated. 9!  Oh that was the birthday my older brother ripped up his leg on an old standing pipe in the backyard and my party had to disband for a bloody trip to the ER – we never even lit the candles on the cake.  17!  How could I forget the first birthday I received a present from a boy – a way-too-sophisticated-for-me gold watch with black Roman numerals I could barely read.  23!  That birthday occurred in the middle of my bridal year and the evening sparkled more than the diamond on my finger.  30!  A sad little birthday alone with my baby in a big house – but her kisses and pats saw me through.  40!, 47!, 53!…and so it goes.  And goes…

What I love most about my birthdays now are the cards I receive.  For two days I let them stand like soldiers on my bookshelf.  I’m tempted to take a picture of them and unabashedly show them off but it’s what’s written inside that slays me the most.  Winsome phrases and words that make me feel cherished.  A friend from far away who tells me that she misses me or even better – that she thinks of me.  Imagine that.  Thank you, Carol, I think of you, too.

I am always charmed as well, when a well-wisher’s card depicts something meaningful to me.  Such was the card I received yesterday from my sister – knowing how much I adore blue and white china and orchids, she somehow found a card with both!  Cards like my sister’s say more than Happy Birthday…they say “I know you”.  It’s always nice to read, “I saw this and thought of you”, as Judy’s card did today when she sent one with a lovely woman on her bed with a laptop.  Yep, that’s me, even now as I write for you here.  Judy knows.  Karen knows too with all the marvelous fairy dust cards she finds just for me.  “The more glitter, the better”, we both agree.  Dear Karen, I feel the sparkling love.

I expect birthday greetings from my beautiful niece who always nails it with particularly thoughtful cards, my daughter who finds just the right words to tug at her mother’s heart.  And my mother, whose cards I deem especially sacred now – her prim handwriting is still the same as the notes she wrote to my school teachers long ago, but the pretty script  belies the passage of time…

And so, on my birthday’s eve, I ask you – why should I not feel a secret little thrill?

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