Daily celebrations exist as best birthdays
Wednesday’s the big day! Time to count Electoral College votes and acknowledge President-elect Joe Biden as the next president of these United States of America.
Personally, an even larger event looms as yours truly registers another year on life’s odometer.
If we lived understanding the fault line truth of life then daily celebrations seem more appropriate. So, actually, come Wednesday, hell or high water and Washington, D.C. protestors including Proud Boys, Make America Great Again loyalists and President Donald Trump, my birthday celebration numbers 24,472 days.
Pardon the self indulgence — Happy Birthday to me and to you, too. Wait a minute, a doctor just entered the bedroom, hoisted my feet upward and offered an open-handed buttocks whack which produced a scream and Beatles inspired “Good Day Sunshine” salutations.
By the way, doctors rarely spank babies during childbirth although the first minute of life registers as one of the most dangerous.
In those 60 seconds an infant must inhale for the first time, causing millions of tiny air sacs to open and fill with air. A baby’s first cry sets into action numerous life systems.
Then, should fortune follow, we enjoy life despite myriad challenges, disappointments and life-threatening experiences. Living teaches us and prepares us for the inevitability of life ending.
The better lesson learned in 2020 should have been that people can quickly leave this land of the living. COVID-19 brought life and death into clarity although past lessons learned underscored our life and death condition.
COVID-19 produced immediate concerns
and may contribute to 400,000 deaths in a year’s time, yet, cancer killed approximately 600,000 U.S. residents last year, according to Centers for Disease Control data.
Heart disease moves toward 700,000 deaths annually. Imagine if U.S. health messages included any public actions even similar to our reaction to COVID-19.
If we’re willing to wash our hands regularly, wear a mask, watch how close we stand next to others, etc., then logical changes in behavior should be enacted to eat more vegetables, exercise regularly and stop smoking to extend life.
While New Year’s Day allows for inspection of life circumstances and resolutions for positive change, birthdays deliver similar reconnaissance.
Health almost always registers as our most mentioned resolution. Most weight loss objectives fail within the first month.
Amazingly, despite our unhealthy passions regarding politics, almost no one espouses resolutions to improve their status as a Democrat or Republican.
U.S. residents rank as incredibly uninformed and disconnected from existence as they expend such emotions and time toward political affairs.
Earth is estimated to be 4.5 billion years old. Human individuals may live for 80. Those numbers bring into focus our short time here.
Birthdays rank as annual milestones while any day deserves celebration. Wednesday ranks as a double dip, almost like two scoops of butter almond ice cream for a birth day and life day.
Personally, birthday wishes from the kids and grands, cards and several phone calls from families will suffice.
Expect a Crock Pot from the girlfriend, Wegman’s carrot cake and an Italian dinner. Plus, plan to order several exotic plant seeds from the Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds catalog for the garden.
Sounds absolutely, wonderfully boring as time ticks away. Living one day at a time remains the best option for celebrations of life.
Finally, our family lost Greg Morris, Jr. 52, days before Christmas and his death offered another dimension to the holiday season.