Happy Birthday to Me!

Yesterday on the eve of my birthday, I posted a blog about aging. Today, one year older, I've had a revelation. (Is it true with age comes wisdom?) As I was eating birthday cake for breakfast, although it's almost lunch time, I was looking at my gifts and rereading my cards, and remembered age isn't important. What is important is how you live your life and what you do with it, and perhaps birthdays are a not so subtle reminder of that. Last night friends treated me to a wonderful dinner and gave me many beautiful gifts that show they really know who I am and what I like: jewelry and chocolate! This morning my in-box was flooded with greetings from friends all over the world, including one whom I haven't seen in over 10 years. Good friends don't care about gray hair, extra pounds, or whether I feel as if I've been professionally successful. Good friends simply care. But this revelation has created something else for me to worry about. I had a touching birthday message from my sister that made me cry, and my eyes welled up as I started to write thank-you notes. Is the ultimate stoic becoming a sap in her old age?