Happy Birthday to Me

I don't normally want much of a fuss made over my birthday. It's not that I mind getting older-- quite the opposite. The older I get, the more I feel like I'm coming into my own. It's just that birthdays aren't that big a deal to me. I'm flattered when someone remembers and wishes me a happy one, but I don't see any reason to make a big production out of it with cakes and hoopla.

So this morning I was surprised to arrive at my office and find that my staff had put a Happy Birthday note on my door and a bunch of balloons. I don't think I even mentioned my birthday to them, so they must've looked it up. Isn't that sweet?

Then when my staff arrived, they informed me they were taking me to lunch. Awww... I have the bestest team ever!

After we got back from lunch, flowers were delivered. They were from Dan, who so rarely gives me flowers that it's a real treat when he does. I got lots of compliments on them and was even more impressed when Dan told me later that the florist is a guy he hung out with in his Teenage Delinquent years. Apparently the guy's parents were florists and he inherited the shop and is quite the respectable citizen now. Funny how life turns, isn't it?

And topping it all off, I got a funny card from my father today with a little cash inside. He had given me birthday presents before going back to New Mexico, so I wasn't expecting anything at all, but my father is the master of little "thinking of you" gifts, so I shouldn't have let myself be surprised. Not after forty-one years to get used to his ways.

In sum, it was a really sweet, special day for me. I got nothing of real consequence, and if I got balloons, cards, flowers and lunch for every birthday it would be trite. But because it's the sort of thing that isn't the norm, I found myself oddly touched by it all.

Happy Birthday to Me!