Ah… the birthday: no other occurrence is first so loved and later so dreaded. As kids we just can’t wait for birthdays but as adults we loath them, avoid them, ignore them- whatever it takes to pretend to ourselves and others that our lives are suspended in a state of constancy.
Luckily for me I don’t have issues with these annual events. Unlike many of my fellow adults, I see life as a blessing at any age and I don’t intend to waste any moments of it lamenting the end of another year, especially when I could be out doing something cool instead of pouting. Sure, I have a few more wrinkles now than I did a decade ago and they will only increase as time moves forward but I’ve enjoyed the years and smiles that brought me those lines so I have no regrets.
Since I don’t view my birthdays as a curse, I have no problem celebrating them with gusto. Why squander a chance to get together with the people who have added love, meaning, and laughter to your life or eat yummy food until your stomach is ready to mutiny?
Fortunately, I have a husband that doesn’t believe in skimping on the celebrating either. He made me a delicious Cabo style birthday breakfast, which took him so long to prepare that it turned into more of a late lunch. And then, as if I hadn’t already snarfed enough fresh salsa and grilled sausage, he took me to Log Haven for dinner. We ate our delicious meal out on their patio with the grandeur of the mountains all around us. It was lovely. The evening was completed by the lighting of a series of fireworks at my in-laws’ and dancing around their hypnotic glow like a bunch of deranged tribesmen.
The next day Jason had planned a repeat of last year’s wallyball/ping pong/billiards extravaganza with all of our friends. This event was held in the same two rooms at Noah’s as last year and it was a lot of fun again the second time around. I lost miserably at pool to my friend Robyn and then lost miserably at ping pong to pretty much everyone. But my wallyball team pulled through, probably no thanks to my skills, and won the grand tournament finale. There were no broken fingers or other injuries to speak of this year so I guess things must have been a little tamer on the wallyball court this time.
Even after that wild wally get-together my birthday festivities were not over. A few days ago my family held their usual quadruple July birthdays spectacular. Since Jason and I have July birthdays, along with my sister and her husband, my family does one giant party every year for all four of us. It’s always a memorable experience and one that the nieces and nephews particularly seem to enjoy.
So now I’m another year older, maybe another year wiser, but definitely another year celebrated!
