Okay! I think that a birthday is more than just a day. I like to celebrate a birthday month. Not for presents or anything but it just gives me a reason to be excited all month.
So my birthday is March 19... that is 19 full days of joy (you can still celebrate afterwards but you know that the momentum lags a bit after a few days).
But a birthday is also like a new beginning, a new year for your soul/body/mind. Isn't it interesting, as Jews we give ourselves so many new years, new beginnings. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year. Tu b'shvat, the new year for the trees. January 1st, the secular new year. Our birthdays begin a new year for ourselves and you always get to celebrate twice if you use your Hebrew birthdate.
Why do we feel like we need to give ourselves clean slates over and over again? We say on Jan 1st that we will make resolutions. We say on our birthdays that this "one" will be a great one. But on Rosh Hashanah its different. On RH we actually take time to look at our lives and the past year. We reflect on mistakes and mis-steps and ask for forgiveness. We look for opportunities to forgive, reconcile, and start fresh. I like it. No empty promises. No gorging on cake, just a good look at who we are today and what we could do better in the next year. But you still get to have fun. So I am going to use this month to reflect and make adjustments and be excited about the future.
So anyway, Happy Birthday Month to me! And don't forget to celebrate you and how cool you are in your birthday month...
not saying that I'm cool...
but I think I am...
you know what I mean...
right?