Stephanie Eva: birthdays

Birthdays, we all have them. Half of our lives we can't wait for them to pass by, and the other half we wish they wouldn't come. We often focus on the milestone birthdays such as the passage into adulthood, the drinking birthday, and getting "over the hill", but what about all the birthdays in between? I believe that every year is special, after all, you are celebrating another 365 days of life-lived! I was recently approached by Paperless Post, a company down to celebrate all of life's events (with some seriously beautiful and fun invites, note the title photo "telegram"!), and asked to share my opinion on the in-betweeners of the birthday world.

When asked to choose a favorite birthday, I'd have to say that if there was such a thing, it hasn't happened to me yet. All of my birthdays have been equally great, but one year has never shined brighter than the rest. Yes, some years have been celebrated more feverishly than others, but overall the enjoyment level has been the best it could be at that time. I do hope this doesn't come across in a sour manner, all of my birthdays have been different and all wonderful in their own respect!

When I was younger birthdays were about gifts, cake and ice cream. Now that I'm older and can see through the superficial, I realize that birthdays are about celebrating the gift of life and that you were able to enjoy it for another year! You never know what's coming next, so why not rejoice the event that adds another tally mark to YOU. I believe age defines a person, not in a binding way like, "you shouldn't date him, he's 40 and ten years older than you" but in a soulful kind of way. If you've been alive for 80 years, it's almost something to brag about. It defines you as a surviver, a thriver! We define ourselves through milestone birthdays, as they are proud moments. But, we must also remember to celebrate and embrace the years that get us to those milestones as they define us, too.

My theory about birthdays is simple, spend them how you wish. If you want to take the day off, sleep in, buy seven cups of expensive coffee and stay up until 3AM this year, do it. Next year you may want to seize the day, wake up early, catch a matinee and go to bed at 8PM. That's fine too. Do whatever it is that makes you happy that year and don't feel pressured to celebrate according to another's ideal of merriment. You do you, boo.