As I woke up this morning and lie in bed I could hear my phone below buzzing away. It was quite early and I thought who is up so early and buzzing me. Then of course, I realized, today is my birthday. Birthdays, a cultural celebration of the day we are born. How did this become a thing I thought?
Birthdays originated in a related fashion in ancient Egypt where they celebrated pharaohs. But it was the Romans who first started celebrating common people in around the first century BC. Of course the tradition primarily began for men and by the 12th century the more important sex, women were finally recognized. As it should be since we are the ones responsible for BIRTHdays!!
Shouldn’t we be celebrating our parents who decided to have us? Which then led me to thinking of my mother. As my bio states I am a product of a child bride at the tender age of 16. The thought of 65 years ago my poor young mother giving birth is probably the most courageous act I can think of. Her life about to change in ways she could never imagine. She was most likely terrified, I know I probably would have been.
Speaking of my mom, I was lucky enough that time has been good to me. I was able to celebrate yesterday with both of my parents, a blessing I cannot thank God enough for. It was a wonderful day having all of my immediate family surrounding me. At this point in my life there is no greater birthday gift than being able to spend time with people you love.
I find it so difficult to believe that I have been here for 65 years. That number seems so old to me. Yet, my mind does not feel like I could possibly be that old. My body on the other hand reminds me that I am. The road I have travelled has offered many adventures. There has been craters in the road, many detours. Every now and then a fast lane taken and then some times the scenic route. Along the way many lessons have been learned and my final destination awaits me.
The one lesson that as young people we take for grant it is the essence of time. If we are lucky it begins to crystalize as we get older. What is that saying? With age comes wisdom but sometimes age comes alone? What exactly is that age? And I hope for everyone’s sake age does not come alone.
When we are in our youth we don’t think that we will run out of time. We may think about time in terms of what do I need to get accomplished and by when. But we never think my time could run out tomorrow and those pressing goals become moot. We live in a world where coming from the prehistoric age (ok a little exaggeration) everything moves so quickly. I see so many of our youth in a hurry to get to the next stage. Trust me this is a reoccurring theme with me; we have had many a post where we talk about our timelines.. And maybe it’s because time for me seems to be on warp speed and I cannot shake it. The most important lesson I have learned is to try to be as present as you can be in the moment. Trust that it will all enfold in its own time. We cannot get moments back and who knows if our time is limited. Try to be as happy as you can be every moment you are blessed to be here.
I recently watched a show where someone travelled back in time to try to change history for the better. For the better turned out not to be better. Every action has a reaction… So… changing time can be a crapshoot. Even though we sometimes think this would be a great power I’m not so sure I would change a thing about my life.
What I do know is that my time here thus far has been a blessing. Every joy, every tear, every challenge, every triumph, every relationship, every moment has made my life full. I can say I have had a rich and successful personal and professional life. Everything that comes next is gravy and I am extremely grateful for all the texts and Facebook posts today from each and every beautiful soul in my life. My life could not be any more blessed.
I would be remiss to not mention a huge blessing in my life which is my co-author. I want to let everyone know how proud I am of this wonderful young woman. My co-author, Natalie Roe Seier has applied to law school and has been accepted to EVERY single school with aid offered. I’m not sure which school is going to have the privilege of her presence but I cannot wait to see her make her mark. Natalie’s time here already has provided her with so many gifts and challenges. She is as present as she can be and I’m so happy for her. May I be blessed with more time to see more of her journey unfold.
