Our lives, the time in our lives, are based on three calendars depending on whom your are and where you are. Man has used the Gregorian, the Jewish, and the Muhammadan. The Gregorian and the Jewish calendars are based on the equinoxes (which occur March 21 and September 23) and the solstices (which occur June 22 and December 22). The Muhammadan calendar is the only one of the three that is based on the Lunar activity; the first day of this calendar was Friday, July 16, A.D. 622.
As we entered into the 2000 millennium, I found myself frequently fascinated with the movement of time. Had my grandmother lived to see the turn of the millennium she would have been 100 years of age. While she did not live to see 100 years of life, many more persons are living passed the triple digit mark.
When we are children, we mark our years with great happiness. We celebrate with parties and gifts and much eating of cake and ice cream. We sing! I had many of those celebrations myself. (The best one was my 8th birthday when my dad, a movie theater manager and owner at the time, shut down the theater and let me and my guests have the entire theater to watch a movie. It was a fright flick called, “Them.” Yes that was fun; but the best part was Dad opened up the concession stand and we got to eat any and all that we wanted. Pop corn!)
Birthdays mark off the events in our lives as well. Such as, “I was married when I was this age,” and “I became a father/mother when I was that number of years.” It seems to be okay to tell your age for quite a while. Then all of a sudden, no more parties, no discussion of age, no bench marking as we did in the past. Why do we suddenly become frightened of saying our age?
I recall being on a plane with the youngest of the bros. He was chatting away with a gentleman across the aisle from us. All of a sudden this fellow asked my six-year old son if he knew his mother’s age. My ears perked up when I heard that! Nick said, “My mother is actually 121 years of age. Look at her. Doesn’t she look wonderful for her age?” (I would like to know why people are so fascinated with my age! But I’m getting off the subject.) As I thought over what Nick said; it really wasn’t such a bad answer. No matter how old I got, I would always look better than it sounded. So for years, when asked my age, that is the answer I gave.
As we have begun to live into the triple digit years, the fore said answer will no longer work, because suddenly one does look one’s age! It also doesn’t work if one plans to continue to have birthdays. (“And, how old is the birthday girl?”) What can I do? Lie to my friends? No. I can’t do that. But Lucille Ball did. The word is that she never told her real age for any reason.
So here comes my birthday this month. Do I have the party? Do I lie about my age? I refuse to punish myself with no celebration.
Four the bros, I gave them a lot of parties… parties with clowns and decorations, parties with balloons and party favors for guests, parties with cake and ice cream. One year I had been very sick around birthday time, and so I punted; I paid for six guests with their fathers to go watch the Harlem Globe Trotters play b-ball. They came back to the house and had cake and opened gifts after the game. That was the least work I ever did for a birthday party, and it was the party that was liked the best. One of the boys told me it was the first time that they had ever had a father/son outing with their dad. Now his father is passed away. I’m glad he has this to remember.
Now, my life has no more bros at home. So no more of those parties. I have decided that if there will be no more b-day parties, at least I should celebrate this special day with some other bench-mark activity.
Here are my suggestions.
*Take a drive into the mountains.
*Go for a picnic in the park.
*Go to dinner or lunch or breakfast at a favorite restaurant (It doesn’t have to be an expensive one. Inn n Out Burger is good.)
*Go have an ice cream cone at a soda fountain.
*If you’re close to the ocean, walk on the beach under the stars
*Listen to music with someone you love and cuddle on the sofa.
*Go out for a night with the girls/guys (Doesn’t have to be wild or maybe you’d like that… then go for it.)
*See a movie with a good friend.
*Take the day off from work!
*Have some excellent rum on the rocks and watch the stars come out (my personal favorite).
*Send cards to all of your best friends on your birthday (let them know that you’re happy to have them in your life.)
*For us girls, take a bubble bath with candles and music in the room and sip on something great to drink!
*For you guys, watch a ball game with all the foods you’ve always wanted to eat while you enjoy the game. Invite your closest friend to share in it.
*Go for a run or a bike ride in the morning; sit and watch the sun set in the evening.
Tell ’em your age, don’t tell ’em your age. But celebrate! Its the day you were born. The day all of this started! The day you began! This month I will make a big noise on my birthday just because I can. Will you?
May your birthday be made the special occasion that it is.
Best… Carolyn Thomas Temple