Still Learning at 30… “Birthdays are meant to be Celebrated…”

So Saturday, 27th Feb, was my birthday, a day I usually choose to keep quite low key. I’m not one for making a huge fuss of this day but in truth, today the fuss was made by my family, mainly my sister.

Ten years have passed since I was 20 and over the last decade I have experienced a lot in my never ending course at the University of Life, and yet today I have learned another lesson: “Birthdays are meant to be celebrated.”

We often forget, or rather choose to not remember the true meaning of a birthday. A birthday, to me, used to mean just another day to remind myself of getting older; a day I would usually use to sit back and take stock of all the things in life I failed to accomplish over the past year. However, this year through the help of my sister and the wisdom that God (Allah, Krishna, Shiva, Jehovah, The Universe or whatever name you choose to call Him) graciously placed in my mind, I have managed to shift my mental paradigm to more of a positive understanding of what a birthday truly means. And it is through this that I discovered that a birthday isn’t just about getting older; its about being grateful for another year that God has allowed you to be present in both your life and in the lives of others. Its another year that you have been granted to remember the pain your mother went through to have you, and all that she sacrificed to raise you and help shape the person that you have become today. Today, besides thanking God first, I thanked my mother. My new blog is dedicated to her, for her being my best friend. So, as I sit here, sipping on my rather large tea cup of green tea, I’m happy to report that I have found a new perspective. Our birthdays are not just a celebration of our life, its a celebration and in fact, a thanksgiving, for the people in our lives who love and care about us with so much of passion, dedication and joy. The people who have helped us throughout the years to attain the things in life that we have, as well as taught us valuable life lessons, and to thank God for an ever deepening spiritual connection with Him.

Honestly, I don’t think I have ever felt so spoiled as I did on Saturday. So thank you to my sister, who showed up with a huge gift basket filled with all the chocolates and sweets that I love, a helium-inflated balloon to remind me of my new age, as well as this massive mug out of which I am now sipping on that ginger infused green tea.

As it is the start of a new decade in my life I have decided to start this blog to share with the world, my thoughts, feelings and opinions about various subjects in life, as well as to provide necessary advice to others, on a purely non-professional human level. And while some might argue that I am not a professional psychologist or psychiatrist, to them I say that to listen and offer advice from a place of personal experience and understanding; one just needs to be human, and nothing more. So in saying this, I invite you to take this journey with me as we grow both mentally and spiritually, regardless of your colour, creed, sexual orientation, or any other humanly imposed sense of division. Since the world has become a rather smaller place thanks to the advancements of technology, lets instead expand our minds, hearts and souls, that we may live in a space that others wonder how we found…a space of understanding, kindness and bliss.

God Bless you all and I will be back with the link to my newly created blog later on. I look forward to listening to your insightful comments and opinions.

P.S. Just because this blog is spiritual in nature, doesn’t mean that its not spicy at the same time, so be prepared as I will be covering some somewhat steamy topics as well.

Have a Blessed day, and remember to find the sunshine…

- Sunflower in the City