C for Charlie, C for Celebration

C is for Celebration

The dictionary lists celebration as a noun, 'the action of celebrating an important day or event'.
The word originated in Latin from the verb celebrare or celeber, where celebr- meant ‘frequented or honoured’.

Some synonyms: commemoration, honour, salute, merrymaking, festivity

Celebrate Every Day

Yesterday morning Che and I got talking as we walked the dogs and he said something that struck a chord in me. Celebrate every day like it's your birthday he said.

That's a great idea, isn't it. If everyday was special I'd try to pack it in with things I enjoy doing. I'd look forward to the day and smile though it, so I thought why not. Why look at each day as just another day to be gone through, like it's a burden or a punishment.

That's how I look at most days. I wake up each day and groan at the thought of all the house work there is to be done. The never-ending list of chores, that has actually started to become never-ending. Everyday is just like the one before and I find myself a lot of times looking forward to the night, not because something special happens then but because I sigh with relief that the day is over. If it stopped there it'd be great but that relief is short-lived and before I know it, I'm making a list of things to do the next day and groaning again. :D

It's true my birthday is the one day I take an off day, put my feet up and do nothing. Now, when I say nothing I mean house and doggie work and it's nice not to have to do all that. But really most of the house work is just chores and I do enjoy the doggie work. Not so much the pee and poop collection but other than that I enjoy my time with the dogs. :)

So, this year I'd like to look beyond the chores, treat each day like my birthday and do something with it that I will remember. I want to learn to accept the chores, so I have fun doing them. Find ways to actually look forward to work rather than cringe like I do most days. Lately some of this cringing comes from my painful gassy problem, especially on bad days like today.

I woke up this morning in pain, it's day two of this bout. The plan for today was to vacuum, change sheet's, spray the house, sweep and mop but the pain I was in had me cringing at the though of the work. Yeah, some of that grimacing was from pain but some of it arose from my not letting go of the plan. I found myself feeling guilty about not doing the work, even though I was unable to do it. I felt terrible putting it off until tomorrow. That felt worse than the pain.

I need to learn to forgive myself, learn to let go, give myself some space and cut some slack without beating myself-up with guilt. Easier said than done. So, this year I'm going to try harder at doing that; at treating myself the way I treat others; nicely. :D

Birthday's Are For Everyone

Ok, enough of my sob stories and onto another reason I thought of the word celebrate. Last evening as I was reading a few blog posts I came across Vidya's post about her Mom's birthday - Mi. Her post is a heart warming one with lesson's I so need to learn. What it also did was remind me of a peculiar custom we have in our family.

In our family when it is someone's birthday, not only is the birthday girl or boy called but parent's, siblings, spouse and children also receive a call of congratulations or mubarakbadi. Birthday's don't belong just to one person, they belong to the family. Everyone celebrates!

Growing up I felt a varied set of emotions about this custom - from happiness to irritation. Today looking at it, I see it as something beautiful. Birthday's are a celebration, a celebration - of life, of the person and what that person means to everyone else. A person's birthday is an event to be celebrated by all who are a part of that person's life. After all if that person wasn't there, there would be a void, no?

So, Mubarak to all my family and friends out there on my birthday. Thank you for being a part of my life. Let's celebrate today and everyday! ;)