Sunday

Today is my daughter's birthday and anytime one of my children celebrates a birthday I celebrate as well. Because I look at those days as "my days" as much as theirs. Each one of those four days is etched in my memory like it was yesterday, with each moment and detail fresh in my mind - the kinds of things one would not normally retain after over 30 years. I remember the weather, I remember the feelings that overwhelmed me and the exact times that everything happened. They are among the most memorable days in my life. So...they are my special days.

This morning I'm already looking at the clock and thinking about this day 33 years ago. I remember the bed I woke up in and I remember getting up to get ready for the day, and how I suddenly realized it would not be a "normal" day. It happened to be Columbus Day and my husband was already outside working on his day off, puttering around the yard at the apartment we were renting. I opened the window and yelled to him. We needed to head for the hospital.

It's amazing how certain days will never be simply memories to us. We store them in special places in our hearts and they become part of who we are. Weddings, funerals, birthdays, graduation - days that mark the time and events in our lives and form the people that we are. With all the nonsense that clutters our brains its amazing that we can be so precise in our memories on very specific ones.

Well...it's time to give my daughter a call now and wish her a wonderful day. But I'll really be carrying her with me in my heart all day long, celebrating her very special life right along with her. Happy Birthday Sweetie!