The Birthday Spirit

....In the next 10 years, I will be 23 years old, I will be married with two kids, own a beautiful secondary school and have an orphan home with up to 100 orphans and bla bla bla …..I read on.

My writing, my words, from a secondary school write titles "In the next ten years".When i wrote this, i was in my first teen year.
re- reading it, the questions I asked myself where, how old was I again?, why did I think I would have all this?, what was going on in my happily-naïve-about-the-ways-of-the-world-head?

Dear 13 year old me. I am glad you had a lot of dreams and fantasies, but life is realer now. I am glad you dreamt freely with no restrictions (you really had none, to dream all this), life is still beautiful, but it is not Alice in Wonderland.

My birthday is around the corner so yes, We had to have a birthday post. Why not?

Everyone has a way they react to their birthdays (the Birthday Spirit I call it), How we feel about getting older, the last year in out own life's; it is like an individual New year and we all get imto it differently.

So I decided to analyse reaction to birthdays, using a typical BBM contacts list as my sample study (I am sure we can all spot them on our contact list)

1.  The birthday crazies-

                These guys must have chosen their birthdays in heaven, because they are sold unto it and they do not take it for granted. Their actions are in 3 stages.

The Month- They love their birthdays, they start the announcement from the first day of their birthday month- Team March, our month is here again, March is Fabulous. Few days to my bday people, Count down on, 24 more hours to goo, Yipeeee- my day is here again.

Days before- They begin to change pictures of themselves a million times day before their birthday to give their contacts picture options to use that day, they act like mother hens to their contacts and if you use a picture they don’t like, they will send you a new picture instantly.

On the D-day- They send an early morning BC- thank you, I see me everywhere ( but you are not my DP- I get the sub, I will make  you my DP now). They might even ping you directly and say- do you know today is my birthday? (Aka-why am I not your DP and PM)

P.S-We all have no right to complain, it is their birthday and they can do what they want to, the least we can be is –happy for them. I always secretly look forward to their birthdays to see the new drama they will unleash.

 2.    In Betweens-

They do not shout about their birthday, but they WILL make you notice, either through a DP that says- Turn down for what, it is my birthday, I cannot keep calm it is my day or a PM that says, Thank you dear God for bringing me to another year again, I see love from every where and I am humbled (yea right, like you were not going through your contacts to see who forgot).

3.  I am not sure I care

You will have no idea in the world it is their day, because they will not mention or say or even instigate. If they are pushed to the extreme because some people choose to remember and put them up everywhere, their response would be- Thanks guys, I am grateful, God has been faithful. If you were not aware before that day, you might not read meaning into this.

My birthday spirit

Why does everybody have a different birthday spirit?

(Here is a little Thesis- by the Psychologist in me)

Our reactions to the day over time

 (Before you give my psychologist an F9, let me explain)

Over the last few years, my birthday spirit has been sad, I always tend to cry because I realize (sadly) that I am getting old. Not that that is a problem, but it seems days before my birthday (the devil I am sure) lets me see someone my age doing amazing things. So on my birthday I think, see what your mates are doing and see you here. That affects my happiness and makes me NO. 3.

On some other years, I do not see my mates doing more amazing things, but I see people tend to celebrate me and think I am doing well for my age and that makes me NO. 2.

I have a cousin who is annoyed by the world around her on her birthday every year, she practically expects to be annoyed, and her birthday is January 1^st.

Some years, she lets the anger get to her and she becomes number 3. Some years she decides she will be happy no matter what and if the decision is made on that day, she becomes NO. 2, If the decision is made before that day, she becomes NO. 1

So however it is we act on our birthdays, making a conscious effort to be happy really helps.It is a good day to fulfill one of the things on your bucket list.

Hate it or Love it, the day we are born was the best day of someone’s life and whether it was a 100 years ago, the fact that it once was a happy day should make all the difference. 

This year, my birthday has 2 days, because it falls on a weekend and I have to celebrate it with my office family. I have decided to be happy for 2 straight days non- stop.

Learn to find fun and happiness, as they say, some people were born on the same day as you, are no more, are really ill, are still struggling for things you did not think about before you got.  By any means, Live life and be Happy.

Happy birthday to my fellow Marchers.

What is your birthday spirit and why is it so? Remember to share your experience below.

Remember to share with your contact list and tell them which number you think they are. Share the Fun.

There is a box below this post with the word E-mail. If you put in your E-mail there, you get straight alerts about any post from here, even if the friend that shared this link forgets to do so. Thank you.