TODAY IS MYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY BIRTHDAY!
CANDLES! CAKE! CELEBRATE!
There is an indescribable feeling when you hold a newborn baby, one who is just hours old. When you look at their squished, sleepy faces wondering what amazing human being they will become, it becomes so very apparent to you that this day – is an incredible day.
A year passes and it’s time for the baby’s first birthday! People gather, parents try their hardest to show off their beautiful creation to their adult friends and this amazing, little human being has already achieved some personal milestones.
As more years pass, birthdays become more and more important. Each year is bigger than the last, there are more tiers on the cake and more kids attend the parties – until they don’t. It shouldn’t take something as drastic as losing a loved one to realize how important birthdays are. Birthdays are joyful events. They are symbolic. They are each person’s new year and yet another significant opportunity to reflect on the life they’ve led thus far.
I am not one of those people who subscribes to the idea that as you get older, birthdays are less and less important. It is not “just another birthday” as we try to humbly dismiss the fanfare that comes with the spreading news that this day is your special day. Sure, I can go on with the rest of my life never having a group of waiters singing to me in a restaurant again – but what fun is that? It’s another candle to blow out, another opportunity to give thanks and who are we kidding – it’s another piece of cake! Bring it on!
It’s not “just another birthday.” It’s ANOTHER BIRTHDAY!
Birthdays are annual opportunities to look at how far we’ve come and to dream about where we still want to go! Who do we want to become, considering who we are now? Birthdays are great times for reflection, focused thought and most importantly – GRATITUDE!
This year, I am particularly grateful for the incredible people who surround me; the incredible parts of our incredible planet that I’ve traveled to and seen firsthand; our incredible nieces and nephew who keep me young and unconditionally adore me and especially, my special-order, dream come true husband!
Most importantly – I am so grateful for the incredible woman who is my mom. She looks all the way into the depths of my heart when she looks into my eyes, she has always given a million percent of herself so that I might go farther than the eye could see or soar higher than any bird from any tree. She has been by my side through thick and thin (literally!) and she has always been my greatest supporter as well as my greatest challenger. It’s because of my mom that I write so well, dream with grandeur and ask why, when I don’t understand.
My mom has taught me more than anyone else I’ve ever met, whether through her own actions, life experiences or through what she has read. Where my mom could not educate me she encouraged me to become educated with the understanding that once I learned, I would teach her. My mom instilled in me the exceptional code of ethics I live by and when life was rough for me from about 13-22, she surely worried but she never gave up on me. She remembers holding that adorable newborn baby, with that squished little face, wondering who this amazing creation would become. Considering everything I’ve endured, I say with the utmost humility that I’m pretty amazing and I know I am who I am – because of my mom. Happy Birthday to me and a HUGE thank you to my mom for making “me” possible. Happy Birthday, MOM! I love you!
The Gratitude Doctor 