As the years go by, and with the increased use of social media, it’s easy to let certain special days slide by. Last week, as I walked out of the house to head to work, I realized that while I had already posted a “happy birthday” message on my husband’s Facebook, I actually hadn’t said the words to his face.
A week earlier, I had laughed a little inside when I read a humorous Facebook post that poked fun at people who actually take the time to say “Happy Mother’s Day” to their loved ones face-to-face or over the phone, rather than posting a sappy message on Facebook for all to see.
These two incidents, although small, got me thinking a little. While 10 years ago, only those closest to me would make the effort to pick up the phone or say “happy birthday” to my face, now anyone who has a Facebook account with their birthday information made public is privileged to getting hundreds of birthday messages within 24 hours, once a year.
Some days, I forget to check whose birthday is it on Facebook, and if I miss someone who really is close to me, I almost feel guilty. But really, I should feel probably feel worse that I hardly pick up the phone anymore to call friends and family. I do rely on the simplicity of text messaging and social media – a lot.
Now, if I’m being truly honest, I really only remember a handful of birthdates without the help of Facebook, or my mother-in-law reminding me. I don’t have a calendar with all those dates marked in, and at this point, I find myself quite a few birthdays behind in sending gifts and cards to even immediate family members.
Growing up, I don’t remember a lot of emphasis being put on our birthdays. Three of the four of us siblings fall within a week, in September, right as harvest was starting to get underway. More often than not, I think we probably had joint birthday celebrations to make things easier.
But, over the years, I’ve noticed that my own parents are keen on making sure we mark birthdays, and do something special. I’m not sure if it’s the increased emphasis that my husband’s side of the family puts on special days rubbing off, but I do enjoy making time to go out for supper, or celebrating our son’s 10th birthday so many times in a week that even he was surprised that he had three birthday suppers.
On Friday morning, as I was trying to get myself out of bed for work, and the rest of the family slept in since there was no school, I heard a knock on the door. Slightly confused, I realized it was likely my mom dropping off something as she made her way work. Along with a few envelopes of mail, she had a birthday card sealed and ready to go for my husband.
Her promptness actually kind of surprised me, and made me realize that there is probably hope for me in the future to be more prepared and ambitious in marking special dates.
