Birthdays

Hey guys, only a short post today as it is my Birthday and I don't want to spend the whole day writing this post!

Birthdays are great things when we're young but when we got old we just want to forget they exist. I have some friends who really look forward to their birthdays but then I have family members who wish the day never came so that they wouldn't have to get any less young (see what I did there). Personally, I really enjoy birthdays and think they are a really great thing (aside from all the presents) because they bring people together and can really lighten your mood. It's hard to be sad on your birthday (unless you're a Goth or something) when you're younger because you just look forward to the presents, the atmosphere and the celebration. It's hard to have a celebration if you're sad. So I really do like Birthdays but I know when I get older I'll probably be one of the advocates for banning of birthdays.

It must also not be forgotten that Birthdays are not always occasions of joy. Some people don't look forward to their Birthday because they don't want to get older. This is especially prevalent on the big birthdays like 40th and 50th (don't even get me started on 60th and 70th) which tend to make people very melancholy. Some people are not like this and remain happy about their birthday but there are still just as many who don't look forward to these occasions one bit. Then there are the people who lost loved ones on these days or who have reached the birthday of someone who died recently. I know this happened last year when my grandfather died. His birthday was the day before mine (so yesterday [May 8]) and last year he died in the middle of April (he died on the morning of my Brother's 21st Birthday) and so come May 8 we were not so happy because we weren't celebrating a birthday we had being celebrating for as long as I can remember. This was especially hard on my grandmother who had being married to him for 54 years. So Birthdays may be happy occasions but they can also be very sombre ones too.

I love Birthdays but then there are those that don't enjoy them for a variety of reasons. I really enjoyed this Birthday because I got some really cool presents and (aside from other things) I got tickets to go see King Kong which is going to be AWESOME and I can't wait. June 30 (when I'm going) couldn't come fast enough!

May the odds be ever in your favour, see you tomorrow!

Taking Things for Granted

Sometimes we take things for granted and we don't actually appreciate what we have until its already gone. Friends come and go but we don't truly appreciate them until we look back and realise what we miss, the same can also be said for Family. Opportunities around us are also often taken for granted and it isn't until we go without it that we realise that what we had was actually something quite special. We are constantly taking things for granted and it takes something like loss to show us what exactly there was to appreciate.

We often take our Friends and Family for granted and we don't even realise it most of the time. Sure, we appreciate our friends but it isn't until they are gone that we realise how much they really meant to us. We think we know how important they are but until you have lost a friend you can't know how much they mean to you. Friends become a part of you (in a way) and when they go it's like a part of you leaves with them. We are always taking our Family for granted and often wish them away. Sometimes families can be so annoying that we just want to leave and never come back. Sometimes we even wish them to just disappear. Then, one day, one member of your family does (inevitably) die, or go away, and then you realise how much they actually meant to you. You realise how important they were and you notice the things that aren't the same anymore. You may have hated what they did with a passion but it isn't until it stops that you realise how you had grown to become attached to them and what they did. Friends and Family are often taken for granted and sometimes we have to lose someone to know how much they really mean to us.

Opportunities and resources around us are also taken for granted. We often don't actually appreciate that we have running water (and that it is hot AND cold) and sanitary living environments. We don't appreciate that we have a roof over our heads and food in our stomach. We don't appreciate that we don't live in constant thirst and that we have electricity. We don't appreciate public transport and education and all the other resources around us that we use on a daily basis yet are often taken for granted. Sure these systems can sometimes be frustrating and incredibly unreliable but at least we have something to be frustrated at. There are many countries who don't even have a public transport system, or adequate education. Many places don't even have running water or electricity. Sometimes we need to be grateful for what we have even though we may not like it because when it's gone, it might not be coming back.

May the odds be ever in your favour, see you tomorrow!