We Wish You A Happy Birthday

By Anna Hessel

 It Only Comes Once A Year

Have you ever thought about why we celebrate birthdays?  Is it because everyone deserves a special day of their very own; or do we just want an excuse to eat cake?  Many of us have photos of that momentous first birthday with cake smeared all over the baby’s face. Some bakeries now even sell miniature ‘smash cakes’, for a nominal fee, of course.

No Pictures

I recall birthdays of my youth, complete with frosting pink roses on my cake. And great games like pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey. Was thinking  of reprising the classic pinning game for my upcoming b-day, but alas, I have no picture of our current Oval Office occupant, no insult intended to all the donkeys out there.

The Way It Was

Children’s birthday parties of yesteryear included goody bags with sugary treats and plastic trinkets, and had old-fashioned fun, like board games and music from a stereo set up on a card table.  Today, children’s parties are much more elaborate events, with clowns, bowling, pony rides, bouncy houses, kiddy-size race cars, and a trip to visit that gigantic cheesy mouse.  Every little girl is a princess, and every little boy is a ninja.  School treats must be individually wrapped, unlike the box of bakery cupcakes we all proudly passed around when I was in grammar school. Continue reading