Today, everywhere I look hearts and love notes pop up. Since I don't really celebrate Valentines, and absolutely think that you should make an effort every day, not just once a year, I rebelled and decided to write about something else.

The subject for today is birthday, and all that goes with it. Don't get me wrong, it's not my birthday any day soon, but someone very close to my hart will be celebrating in few days. I use the term "celebrate" loosely, because there will be no real celebration, but I have to say:

"Happy birthday, I love you!"

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I wrote about my birthday in August, and told you all about not making wishes, but rather decisions. I like to think that making a decision for something to happen puts you in a situation where you are responsible for the outcome, and work harder on it. Making wishes on the other hand is different because you almost always have some higher power in mind, that you relay on for making it true.

While thinking about throwing a party for my special someone, I realized that not all of us want to celebrate birthdays. That came as a little bit of shock for me, since I always look for a reason to have a party, but it also made me think.

Two ways people see birthdays:

Getting older:
Most people associate birthdays with age only, and reminder that one more year has gone by. Those people are usually not in the mood to celebrate, and they see no reason for it. I respect their opinion as valid as any other.

Celebrating life:
This isn't as much as a group as it is my view of birthdays. I love them!

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Why?
I am not talking about gifts, party and the cake (well I love the cake part, too), but rather a deeper meaning of it. The costume of celebrating birthdays goes a long time back in history, and I think they were on to something that we forgot. Allegedly the tradition of birthdays is "pagan", and I don't want to go in to all that religious mess, I want to talk about it's meaning for me.

I love it because for me it's a reminder that I am alive. I had the privilege to live a whole year, and that is a reason enough for me. The other thing is I didn't get older, I got wiser. If you try to learn something new, anything at all, a year is more than enough time to do it. Even if you just got started, you are on a right path. With every year that passes I see it as building myself up, not wasting away.

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How about you? Do you celebrate, and why (not)? Be sure to leave me a comment!

With love,
Tamara