Why our birthday feels special
Today is my birthday.
I did not say this because I am looking for greetings and well wishes. My ego is not that fragile. Since this is the anniversary that I was propelled from someone’s womb, certain thoughts cross my mind on why birthdays feel different than other days.
When we were children, we felt a sense of exuberance waking up on the morning of our birthday. Even as adults, we feel at least slightly more special on this day. Even though we share our birthday with millions of other people around the world, it still feels like a day that is all about us.
Why is that?
I almost did a Google search on this question, but decided to forego it and just offer my own theory. It’s my birthday after all, so I feel a sense of entitlement.
As humans, we naturally seek love and acceptance.
We want to be recognized by others. We want to know that someone cares about us, even for only a short while. We seek it in different ways, based on the unique talents and attributes each of us brings to the world.
For right or wrong, some receive love and acceptance because of the way they look. Others receive it for the things they do. Some deserve that love and acceptance, and others do not.
We sometimes find ourselves competing with others for love and acceptance from parents, teachers, bosses, or friends. For some, it comes easy. For others, it can be heart-breaking.
But when it is our birthday, it doesn’t feel like we have to compete with anyone or anything for that love and acceptance. It’s our day, and the stars feel aligned around us. We enjoy the acknowledgment, the greeting cards, and the messages we may get from people we wouldn’t hear from any other day of the year. It all happens on that one day.
We don’t have to look a certain way or do anything extraordinary to get the acceptance we yearn for. We just receive it for no other reason than it is “our day”.
Anyone who says their birthday is just another day…they are lying.
For me, I usually don’t want a big fuss made on my birthday. I do not want gifts, and unless it is a major milestone birthday, I do not want a party. Some people make a much bigger deal of it than I prefer. My family is taking me to dinner tonight, and even that took a bit of convincing. But I am looking forward to it nonetheless.
Here is the truth. If my entire birthday came and went without anyone acknowledging it, I would be disappointed. I guess I want the same love and acceptance as anyone else.
Maybe our birthdays are a reminder not just of the day we were born, but our reminder of the people who care about us enough to recognize our special day. It is the one day that we have an opportunity to appreciate that we made it through another year on this earth — to examine the highs (not lows) of where we have been, and more importantly, where we plan to go with the remaining years of our lives.
As I ponder these thoughts, I owe it to myself to make the next 365 days a good one — to make it one that I can feel proud of when my next birthday rolls around. I prefer to be recognized for the positive things I can contribute to the world, rather than for just being born on this day.
But on this day, I will accept the recognition just for being alive and be incredibly grateful for the chance to pursue the unfulfilled dreams still swirling around in my brain.
So, how old am I today? Well, let’s just say that I am old enough to know better — and young enough to do it again. :)
If you are reading this sentence, thank you for being with me until the end!
