The Value of Every Last Crumb

The singing has faded, the phone calls have stopped; the dishes are washed and the leftovers put away; the cards have been lovingly read and appreciatively displayed. New this year were the Facebook greetings from people I haven't seen in years, and others who probably don't me well enough to care. All in all, it was a wonderfully indulgent day. But now the birthday is past; it is the ordinary day after with more routine necessities of its own.

That's fine because, special days notwithstanding, I like my "life as usual." Certainly among the world's fortunate, with better health than I deserve, I am privileged to engage in meaningful work, delight in an affectionate family, nest in a comfortable home, and enjoy innumerable opportunities to indulge my curiosity and creativity.

Whatever else they may afford, perhaps birthdays are precious because they don't simply make you feel special, but remind you that you are -- a favor you get to return every time you get to celebrate someone else's. It is a day, certainly, to mark your aging, but in the process to comprehend again, as the old quip puts it, that getting older is better than the alternative.

Which, in other words, is simply to be reminded that life -- your own, along with all those who surround you -- is important...

...sacred...

...transient...

...and, as with last night's cheesecake, worth forking up every last crumb.