Quarter Century Birthday Fun
Last Thursday I turned 25, the age of maturity. The laws can say 21 or 18 make you an adult – my neighborhood rabbi declared me a man at 13 – but I feel the weight of 25 is when you attain a measure of true maturity by default. The number itself is huge for a young person. Twenty-five, or in other words, thirty minus five. T-minus five years to thirty…and counting.
Being mature now, I did the responsible thing and racked up all the free birthday swag I could get. On Monday, I was treated to a free birthday entrée courtesy of Chevy’s Fresh Mex (I went with the veggie burrito, which was awesome). On Wednesday night, I traded my free $30 birthday gift certificate to Benihana’s for some hibachi chicken. On Thursday (my actual Gregorian birthday), I drove to DSW Warehouse and cashed in my $5 birthday gift certificate for socks, then went to Miami Prime Grill for a free birthday appetizer. I went for the smoked fish dip, which turned out to be a combination of whitefish (they claim) and tuna (I surmise) flanked by fresh tomatoes and jalapenos. Delicious. Next was a stop to Firehouse Subs, which treated me to a free medium sub after a glance at my driver’s license. I still owe Padrino’s a visit, there’s a lovely b-day two-for-one entrée coupon stowed somewhere in my car.
The perks of living in America. Lord knows how many other businesses are willing to wish me happy birthday in return for my email address. For those allergic to spam, you could make an account like BirthdayPresents@gmail.com, sign up for all the goodies, and only check it near your birthday to avoid all the email ads. And while I’m mentioning free stuff and birthdays, if you haven’t seen “Community,” “Bob’s Burgers,” “Modern Family,” “Misfits,” or “Kingdom,” they’re free on Hulu.com, and movies like “Men In Black” and “Stranger Than Fiction” are on crackle.com. Happy Birthday.
On my birthday, I got what most people are familiar with by now: dozens of happy birthday posts on facebook. To all my friends who shouted me out on my birthday, thank you. It really made me feel good to see the love showered on my wall. Some people asked me if I threw a crazy party. When I was turned 21, I had four bands in my backyard in Gainesville and the entire party was filmed. This year, I went to dinner with my grandma, my girlfriend, my parents, and a couple of my close friends.
I’ll tell you a secret. On my 20th birthday, I threw a big party at my apartment in Gainesville. While the guests were arriving, I was sitting alone in my room, sad. I had no apparent reason to be sad. My place was filling up with close friends and party people ready to celebrate my birthday. Here’s the thing. My birthday is September 15, 1986, and I am a Virgo. Believe it or not, but all the different signs get different superpowers. Virgo’s gift is a sort-of people microscope. We can see the virtues and faults of everyone around us, ourselves included. In the month of your birthday, the energy of your sign is magnified.
I think I was sad that day because I was looking too much at my own faults. Of course, the Virgo microscope can be used proactively, to quickly see what you’re doing wrong and correct it, and gently share with your friends how they can step up some aspect of their lives. At 20, my microscope was focused on all the horrible things in the world and in myself, which is NOT the right way to use my power. This year, in a smaller setting, I was genuinely giddy on my birthday. Over some tasty eggplant pizza, we talked and laughed about football, the election, law school, you name it. But the pizza (Anthony’s Coal Fired, in case you’re wondering) and the party had nothing to do with why I was happy.
You can have all the fun in the world on your birthday, or any other day, but how you feel about yourself at the end of the day is all that matters. If you aren’t happy with yourself, you won’t be truly happy on your birthday, at the Super Bowl, even with a billion dollars. For me, the path to being truly happy comes with free swag and the time tested adage: it’s better to give than to receive.
On my birthday I gave away books I got for the price of shipping, for less than a dollar a piece. These books have titles like “God Wears Lipstick” and “God Does Not Create Miracles, You Do!” I got a bunch of them from the kabbalah.com bookstore to give away because the wisdom in these books has helped me transform into the man I am today. One of the first things I ever heard at the Kabbalah Centre was “Don’t believe me. Try it and see if it works.” My friends, I love to share, which is the whole reason I write. I enjoy sharing the greatness in this world that my Virgo microscope lets me see, and the best thing I could possibly share with you is the wisdom of Kabbalah. Just don’t believe me, try it for yourself.
Thanks again for the birthday love. Last year was the best year of my life, but I’m not looking back. With the blessings of support of my friends, family, and the Creator I’m excited to look forward, because I know this will be the best year ever.