I am sure I am not the only one to have come up with this concept: the ‘non’ birthday. There are many famous numbers that seem worthy of a perfectly loud group of people coming together to party it up, the numbers 30, 16, and 21 come to mind. The number 32, when talking about birthdays, not so popular. The big numbers for birthdays would not be ‘big numbers’, if there weren’t some quiet numbers in between. Today I turned 32, and I probably could have forgotten it altogether this year except that as a child June 4th was a day of celebration EVERY year, with homemade cupcakes, homemade ice cream, and a group of little girls and boys running around (or skating around) all for the major accomplishment of me growing one more year older. So thank you beautiful sweet mom for helping me appreciate the year and day I was born. But, what to do with those birthdays that just seem like every other day? I made up my mind yesterday to have a non birthday, it just seemed right. I wanted to do things that I would do on any other day, but with more focus of enjoying them than I normally do.
So what did I do today? I took laundry to the wash house (happy birthday me, they even fold it for you), I watched a favorite show, mailed a package to a friend (that was way over due), payed some credit card bills, made my favorite cookies (french macarons), and went to a coffee shop (not all in that order). It was one of the best birthdays ever!!! To top off my non birthday a friend took me out to dinner (ok so this wouldn’t normally happen on just any given day, it’s the only part of the non birthday that would be considered a birthday).
I think this weekend will be quiet as well, some how intentional escaping from social situations for me is a gift to myself. I prefer quiet and content to words like introvert and alone. I think it is perfectly fine and normal to want to spend time alone or with just a couple of friends than to make a huge deal every year. So to everyone out there in “blog-world”, if you have a few ‘non’ birthdays as well in your life, count yourself lucky and blessed, because in order to have a ‘non’ birthday, it means you have had ‘big’ birthdays. Both are equally as important because they initiate another wonderful year of life and growth that you are entering, and are a wonderful indicator of the days you have lived and learned. Be content and look forward to the little things. It makes every day so special, birthdays, and non birthdays alike.