UNITED STATES—Birthdays, they come around once a year people, and with that assertion, they should be celebrated if you ask me. However, the older I get, I see the importance of a birthday not being as important as I once considered them. I’m not only speaking from my perspective, but a lot of friends and family members that I know who as they age, focus more on life, and not just a simple b-day.
I’m a firm believer at celebrating milestones, reaching the double digits, becoming a teenager, turning legal, becoming 21, reaching 25, and then celebrating your birthday every time you reach 30, 40, 50, etc. However, I know people who celebrate their birthdays as if something of epic proportions have transpired. Is there something wrong with that? No, but I wonder why some people find extreme solace in their birthday coming around each year, while others just see it as another day.
For example, last year was the first time in a very long time I didn’t actually celebrate my birthday. For the oddest reason, I just wanted a year where things could be chill, I could relax and everyone didn’t make such a massive deal about me actually doing something on my birthday. It seems EVERYONE, and I mean everyone in my family wants me to celebrate my birthday, whenever it comes around. Perhaps that’s because I’m no party animal driven to go out and get hammered every night of the week or sleep with everything that has two legs and a pair of breasts.
When my birthday comes around, it’s a sign to me that I’ve managed an opportunity to live another 365 days in the year. That’s not an easy feat people. Some of us take life for granted, tomorrow is never promised, neither is next week, next month, or 6 months from now. I will admit the one thing that is very important to me when it comes to celebrating my birthday is I refuse to work.
Yep, I’m one of those individuals that no matter what transpires; my birthday is a day that I refuse to do any work in any capacity. I’m a firm believer that is a day that a person deserves to have off. You should be able to rest, relax, unwind, and not be STRESSSED. Out of all the years that I have been on this Earth I think I have only worked once on my birthday, and it really was not by choice. It was due to the fact that if I didn’t work, things wouldn’t have gotten done, and I dreaded coming back to work with a ton of things sitting on my desk.
I noticed that my father is the polar opposite to me, he indulges in celebrating his birthday, and his in his 50s, perhaps a sign of things to come for me. He enjoys being the life of the party to say the least, but I think his focus is more on the idea that people remember to call him on his big day. However, I’ve seen my sentiment echoed with many of my siblings, once we reach a certain age, the celebration of a birthday is important, but not on epic scales as in the past. We celebrate our birthdays, but we understand it’s not just a day to sit around and let loose to a point where you regret what you did.
I don’t care what age you are, you should always celebrate your birthday, rather it’s a movie, a dinner, a nice lunch, an expensive gift, whatever makes you happy make it happen, because it’s your BIRTHDAY!
