Tuesday, August 13, 2013

No Birthday Pony...Again

Another year of spinning around for 365 days; my perspective on the world has been altered by the spinning.

Yesterday was my birthday... and, once again, there was NO pony.



Gaining a new perspective is always the greatest birthday gift of all. When I was young every birthday was totally ALL ABOUT ME. It took me 50 years to get over that warped view of life. 

I thought the world should give me lots of stuff and allow me to travel to cool places for my celebration or give me a new screened- in porch so people would quit asking why I have a door which leads to no where (a story for another time). 

Frankly, time has taught me that "birthday magic" costs more the older I get, and the stuff which once thrilled me in my youth no longer has the same zing when the calendars' pages flip by faster than an old Cary Grant movie sequence. 

In fact, the calendars' pages turn so quickly now that I am considering using them as a fan to cool my kitchen.

On this year's birthday, even though I gave my own self flowers and baked my own cake...


...and cleaned my house for my own party and made all my guests look at old photos of ME and I bought my own gift (for which my sweet husband gave me money), it wasn't about me this year. I didn't expect the world to alter its course to revolve around me. Instead, I made a decision to embrace my true gifts of...


...a mom who has devoted her entire life to her children and grandchildren, and...


...brothers and sons (missing one plus awesome daughter-in-law who later called me) and nieces (missing one who later sent me a text ) and a husband (who took this picture) and a dad (who is happily in heaven and told me right before he died, "There are only two things in life which are important: family and God") and two dogs which make my life both hectic and sweet and my new finches which are singing as I type and Gipsy the Teardrop (which my husband sacrificed to give to me because he is awesome like that) and Hillcrest Cottage which provides a place to make my life happen.

The wisdom-gift I opened on this birthday was that my true gifts are all around me and that if I am always looking for the next big thing... 

I will miss all the blessing of today.