“Because time itself is like a spiral, something special happens on your birthday each year: The same energy that God invested in you at birth is present once again.”
~Menachem M Schneerson
All the images in this collage were taken a few days ago at a memorable Birth Day celebration for someone special. As you can see, this was a lovely place for the occasion and we had a fabulous buffet meal. We enjoyed each other’s company and were overjoyed that we could share in the time we spent together and in the making of good memories.
The words Birthday, Celebrate, and Memorable are my additions. I photographed these from cards. They depict for me what the remembering of one’s day of birth is all about. Also, what is a birthday without flowers – Nature’s own gift! The small arrangement I added to the collage was made by me as a gift for my friend. I didn’t want to detract from the image of the table setting so I minimized this image significantly. Cake is the other “must” for a Birth Day celebration. I inserted the image of the cake with candles so that this element would be present. I made this image large. It was fun doing this collage.
As time passes, a Birth Day, my own or someone else’s, causes me to reflect on how what is important changes, as we celebrate more and more of these special occasions. While the day of our birth brings that special energy, joy, and happiness, and always will, we become more cognizant of the time there will be no birthdays to celebrate.
Younger people may think that this is morbid thinking. In reality, though, it is very positive, as there is a kind of “work” that needs to be done at this time. This work was not possible at any other time of life. It isn’t so much about how many Birth Days we have as how we spend them. The truth be told, it refers to how we spend all our days and not just Birthdays. We become concerned with meaning.
We are always still involved in all the trivial and not so trivial pursuits that make up our Earth Life. I find, though, that many important changes are taking place within me. I am learning to set better boundaries around people, places, and things, in my life. My Birth Days and other days have become more fraught with meaning. Just as surely as we have Birth Days, we will all have Death Days, but as Norman Cousins rightly said: “If something comes to life in others because of you, you have made an approach to immortality.” If there is real connection with only a few people and a touching of hearts and minds in this life, that is what is the real “immortality.” It is from this that meaning comes.
Hope you feel the same energy on your Birth Day that you felt on the day you were born and that you “connect” in meaningful ways along your journey through this Earth Life. Enjoy the collage!