Birthdays are on my mind today so that is where I will start; my aunt, 87 yesterday; my brother, 65 today; my granddaughter, 10 on Sunday. And on the 24th, my father and my mother's mother, then on the 31st, my father's mother, all having passed on so many years ago. So many people to celebrate in May, and so many others who come to mind, celebrated by all of you.
Birthdays mark time. And time is a human creation. So birthdays are self-designed celebrations of ourselves. Whoa! That sounded judgmental, and yet I meant it to sound like:
WOW, yes, let's celebrate ourselves.
I woke thinking about Deon, a long-time friend who knew how to celebrate herself. I was missing her this morning, so I know she was part of one complicated dream I had last night.
Deon would throw a party for her own birthday, and openly welcomed the gifts we showered upon her. And she would buy herself something special to mark the day. As part of the celebration, she would also start a story circle to relate how we knew and admired her. She was outrageous and such a teacher of being authentic to what she needed - and deserved.
Something unique within prompted her to this loveliness, because her childhood only taught her that she was less than others.
At what point do we stop celebrating who we are? Children know how to unabashedly accept our love and appreciation. Andrea, 10 on Sunday, will happily accept our loving attention and gifts. Life is "awesome" for her. She moves with the energy of the day and fairly bounces with joy, accepting all that is offered to honor her being. We taught her from her first breath to see herself as strong, smart and beautiful.
Many of us learn to be self-deprecating. We shy away from celebrations that place us in the spotlight. We press ourselves to achieve more, provide more evidence that our lives count for something. We deny accolades unless we feel we have worked hard enough to earn them.
Yet, we are these awesome creations, unique, one-of-a-kind beings in all the Cosmos. We have not a thing to prove. We are, therefore we count - for more than we can imagine.
A friend, enjoying a surge of new Spirit, is exploring changing her name. She is acknowledging a new dimension of herself and seeking a way to celebrate this emerging self. Hurrah!
What if every day were spent seeing ourselves in the light from God's eyes? What if we acted as if we were special each and every day. And that energy built within us and became a light that shown outwardly to illuminate each other person. Each person seen in their own perfection.
And celebrated.
Until next time, Breathing with you,
I AM Phyllis, Still Becoming
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