Happy Birthday to Me!
Posted by Elizabeth
There are two types of people in this world: those who love their birthdays and those who’d prefer to hide under a rock when their special day rolls around. I happily belong to the former group, a diehard birthday-holic who tries to milk the occasion for all its worth. Over the years my birthday has morphed from a single day of celebration to a month-long affair. Tomorrow I am turning 32, and I’m proud to say that, this year, the festivities kicked off in early April, when I declared a particularly spectacular dinner in Bologna, Italy, “my birthday dinner.” “We can go out on your birthday,” Maikael said. “No,” I responded, “I’d like to remember this as my ‘birthday dinner.’”
Although 32 isn’t a particularly momentous year, I have a fun weekend of celebration planned, from high tea and a pedicure with a dear friend to a last-minute lunch invitation, from a twilight picnic at the symphony with my honey to a low-key barbecue. It’s a fitting reflection of where I’m at in my life right now, an eclectic patchwork of interests and friends rolled up into a three-day period that hits all the right notes.
Birthdays are important to me not just because of the revelry and celebration, but because they are a way to mark the passage of time. Birthdays are wrapped in tradition and ritual, of which there’s little left in this world. They are a time of reflection, when I think about where I’ve been on my life’s journey the past 365 days, and where the next 365 will take me. As the blog approaches its first birthday, a big part of my journey this past year has been learning to live “in pencil.” Although 31 wasn’t a year I’m likely to remember for any particular reason, there are so many moments that comprised that year that I’ll never forget. And as I look forward to a year filled with birth and new life, sleepless nights and first steps, constant change and boring hours, family and friends, writing and more writing, transition and change, I know the one thing I can count on is the fact that my life will be rewritten on a daily basis.
I know I’ll be better at living my life “in pencil” on the cusp of 33 than I am at 32.
How do you feel about your own birthday? Love it or loathe it? Is it a time of reflection or a time of hiding out?
May 21st, 2010 at 7:09 am
32 is looking pregnant with possibilities…
(sorry, I couldn’t help myself).
Happy Birthday!
May 21st, 2010 at 8:55 am
I love birthdays – like New Year’s – as a moment of reflection and recognizing the passage of time, as you say. I love this built-in chance to think about the past year, dream of the coming year, appreciate all you have (health, financial security, family).
May the coming year hold many adventures and unexpected delights for you, Elizabeth!
May 21st, 2010 at 11:58 am
Well since I celebrated my birthday yesterday very low key, I can say I am right in the middle of the two. This year I really wanted to celebrate 30 with a bang, we since I am expecting that didn’t happen. So I opted for a low key day. We will be doing a couple of baseball games this weekend, and Marc got us a hotel room at the Mariott, so the three of us will spend the weekend together and loving it I am sure.
Then we have a BBQ on Sunday.
I am also looking at this as the last weekend to do something speical as a family of three, before the new arrival. Because really after this weekend, she could come at any time.
Happy Birthday tomorrow!!!! I hope it is everything you want and more.
May 21st, 2010 at 1:11 pm
Oh, I am *just* like you – I LOVE my birthdays, even when I hit the big 4-0. I mean, I get depressed for about a half hour, but then I realize I have an excuse to celebrate. So I love that you’ve shouted your own greetings from the top of your blog.
I love my birthday for maybe more self-centered reasons. There aren’t alot of days out of the year where people will drop whatever they are doing, if even for 30 seconds, to focus their attention on me. I love celebration and all the joyousness that comes with it; it’s a nice departure from the drudgeries of day to day life and I have to say that I need the escape from time to time.
Thanks so much for your warm comments on my blog earlier in the week! (I’m the one who used to work in admissions and live in Japan.)
Happy Birthday to you! (and today’s my anniversary! I have pretty much left a trail of announcements everywhere I’ve gone in the blogosphere…)
May 22nd, 2010 at 12:52 am
Feliz Aniversario!
Liz noticed this morning
while Maikael was snoring,
A rumbling deep in her tummy.
Her insides were roaring
There was no ignoring
This birthday wish for her mummy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_sFMErtEB8&feature=related
May 22nd, 2010 at 6:23 am
I do love birthdays, although not so much since I turned 40. I prefer to celebrate the entire WEEK of my birthday. It makes it so much more bearable.
May 22nd, 2010 at 11:40 am
Happy birthday, Elizabeth! I hope you enjoy your day of small treats.
My birthday is on Christmas Eve and, because I was raised in a Catholic family, my childhood birthday parties tended to be swept up in the hullabaloo surrounding Christmas. I used to mind, but I don’t anymore. Now my idea of a perfect birthday celebration would be sleeping late, eating well, and enjoying a quiet day with my family.
All my best for a wonderful year ahead!
May 22nd, 2010 at 12:40 pm
I would say Happy Belated Birthday but since you are celebrating all month, that would not be a correct statement. Happy Birthday! I do like birthdays but there is always a certain pressure involved to make it a good one. That is why I like your approach. If you celebrate all month, there is no presssure to make that particualr day perfect. I think you are onto something here.
May 23rd, 2010 at 12:17 am
Happy Birthmonth! And I don’t really fit into either category but if you force me to choose I would say celebrate. Live life with zest! Plus I adore people who love their birthdays as much as you do, they are the most positive people I know