It's my birthday and I'll____ if I want to!

Yep....it's true. Today is my birthday. Because we are friends, I will tell you...I'm 46 today. Whooo Hooo! (said in the most sarcastic way possible!). I don't MIND birthdays per sa. I just get a bit uneasy about birthdays. I think I am "growing old gracefully", as the saying goes. I don't really "feel" old. I mean, WHAT is "old". When I was in my teens, "old" was my grandparents. They were probably in their sixties. When I was in my 20's, "old" was people in a nursing home. Probably late 70's and beyond. When I was in my 30's, I wasn't sure there was such a thing as "old" because I worked with the senior population and some of them seemed younger than me! Now in my 40's, I KNOW that I am aging but I don't feel OLD. I have some health issues so some days, I DO feel physically old and I have a whole new appreciation for the aches and pains of the older population. I have to admit, I kind of like being in my mid 40's. Like many others, I DO wish I knew back then what I know now, but that would have eliminated so many wonderful people in my life that I could never be as "wise" as I am now. My goal is to continue to gain wisdom as the years tick by! (If you ask my children, my daughter would say I'm wise and my boys would just grimace and shake their heads...they will "get it" someday!) You know, at this stage in the game, I don't really WANT anything for my birthday. I don't have a "wish list" and truthfully, we've never been big on birthdays except to show each other how much we love one another...and it doesn't usually include material gifts....a cake and a favorite meal...but not much else. Finances haven't always been in our favor, but even when it wasn't a problem, it just seemed more "special". As the kids got older, the "tradition" or lack thereof, just continued. For this birthday, because it is on a weekend, I have "lucked out" and really "scored" for my birthday. Last night my wonderful sister took me out to a new local restaurant. We waited for over an hour to be seated, but it was so worth it, and it gave us time to catch up and laugh...a lot! Tonight I am going out to dinner with my Dad and step-mother. I don't know exactly WHERE we are going but dinner out is a treat for me so all the better! This morning, I got up and drank coffee...my favorite morning thing to do....and it was quiet...another favorite! And then I checked my Facebook and what a surprise...I had so many birthday wishes....and they keep coming! How blessed I feel. What more could anyone ask for?!?!?! Sometimes I think that birthdays are celebrated all wrong. Shouldn't we be celebrating the fact that God has given us another year? OK, for some of us, we DO celebrate that way, but I mean REALLY being thankful instead of expecting others to shower us with gifts. Maybe WE should be giving gifts to others instead of getting them. Like giving our parents gifts for giving us life....or giving our siblings gifts for putting up with us throughout all of the challenging childhood years. Perhaps a better way of celebrating our years on this earth is to praise the ONE who brought us here...and to remember that HE brought us here for a PURPOSE!!! I know, I know....I still struggle with my purpose on an almost daily basis, but it is a start. So for my birthday today, I am chosing to do something different....I am going to spend some extra time in prayer and thanks for all God has given me...all He has pulled me through...all of the gifts He has given me....there is just so much to be thankful for, today and everyday! It's my birthday and I'll pray if I want to. I'll also laugh if I want to...cry if I want to ...smile if I want to...and with all of these things, I will give thanks! Today may not be your birthday, but why not give thanks for all the wonderful things in your life. You know, God's word says that we are to give thanks in ALL things...that's a tough one! But today, just TRY to thank God for even the tough times in your life...the situations that aren't all roses and smiles...thank God for EVERYTHING!!!! Come on!!!! It's MY birthday and I want you to do this...for me...even if it is just for today! You are an amazing gift...to me...to others! So I want to say, today...THANK YOU FOR THE BIRTHDAY GIFT...THE GIFT OF YOU!!! Bless you all today and always! Sooz