Did you ever have a grown up in your life tell you, after graduation or a significant birthday, that it was all down hill from here? I mean, what is that? What kind of message is that to give someone during a moment of celebration?
Celebrations need to be savored. Those are moments we don't get back. Whether it's graduation, a new baby, a wedding, a holiday, your birthday, or just Tuesday with your family, we don't get that time back - ever. And yet, the older we get, the less we celebrate. Hmm. Seems kind of backwards to me.
Let's think about this. A baby's first birthday is a big deal. Of course it is. Parents have a special cake for the baby to literally dig into, and probably spend too much money on a bigger cake for everyone else that no one eats because they don't need the calories. They invite all of their friends over who stand around and watch the baby tear into this aptly named 'smash cake' and coo and gurgle and speak infant. All the while, the child has no clue what's going on. This pattern gets repeated for years until the entire 5th grade ends up having a slumber party at your house complete with a space walk in the back yard and pancakes for 30 the next morning. And on it goes until one day you turn around and YOU are the one that's 30. Or 40. Or 65. And the last thing you believe you want to do is celebrate with your friends and/or family. A quiet evening at home will do just fine.
What?
We finally have a clue and we quit. It's not convenient. It takes up too much time. We don't want to put anyone out. It's just another day.
Well, I don't know about you but I think that's just nuts. Have you watched the news lately? As I write this another round of killer tornadoes are ripping apart lives and property in parts of Oklahoma and Missouri, as a chunk of the Deep South is still sifting thru debris from the last bunch. Hurricane season starts in 10 days, and frankly, the idea of that already makes my stomach hurt. A mother is finally on trial for allegedly killing her 2 year old. There are lives that are in turmoil because they honestly thought the world was ending last Saturday and they walked away from family and jobs at the direction of a radio engineer who is beginning to sound like a GPS after a wrong turn (re-calculating, re-calculating...).
Ladies and gentleman - we may not get another day. It simply is not a guarantee. The time to celebrate is now. Now that we are old enough to appreciate what it is that we're celebrating.
Now don't get me wrong. I do believe we should celebrate our children's birthdays. Those rituals are important and necessary. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with a quiet evening at home or making adjustments in holidays as families change and friends drop in and out of our lives. Believe me, no one contemplates where their life is, has been, or is going to more than I do. God-willing, in few months, I'll hit that 40 number. Single, living in apartment, and sitting behind a desk on Dauphin Island is certainly not where I expected to be at this point. If nothing changes between now and then (and we make it past the new projected end of the world...re-calculating...) - I'll probably contemplate and deal with a range of emotion leading up to November 18, and more on November 19 - but ON that day I hope to be celebrating with the people I love the most. At least celebrating making it to 40 and having a new chance and a new decade to make changes where needed and appreciate even more the blessings I have in my life.
This week two of my cousins graduated from high school. One of them wrote a note describing his day as the 'end of the introduction of (their) story'. I kinda love that. The end of the introduction. Which means Chapter 1 is about to start. Definitely a time to celebrate, and I hope both Drew and Will blow the roof off their respective towns. Tomorrow is my brother's 34th birthday. He's spending a quiet night at home. And that's ok - it's been a very busy month. But first, some of us will gather for lunch and some fun and a little celebration of the day this remarkable young man came into our lives and made it richer and more beautiful than we could have ever imagined.
You see, it's never inconvenient to celebrate. It isn't just another day. It doesn't take too much time. You aren't putting anyone out. And it is NOT downhill from here. It's a starting point. Everytime. Take the joy and energy of each celebration and use it to walk forward, looking back only when needed, taking what we've learned and experienced and making it to the next celebration stronger, more able to handle the down times in between, and able to recognize that no celebration is a small one - not even if it's just Tuesday with the family. Each one becomes more precious as life gets busier, we get older, and the world gets scarier. They are not to be taken for granted.
And for heaven's sake...don't quit.
"The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate."
- Oprah Winfrey
