Birth-Days: An introspection

Why do I want to write about it? Maybe I want to compare this experience in years to come. Perhaps I want to introspect about happening around day in a better way, or it might just be that I want to write about something.

So the day started at midnight with a video call from the usual group of friends. One question which haunts me is that is it always so that every person has some group of friends with whom they are always in contact, who seems to do it for the sake of love, with no second thoughts attached. I do not know. Was I expecting a call from them? Yes. How would have I felt had they not called me? Sad possible. In childhood, I remember, it was not friends who used to wish me first but parents. So, when did this happen, that friends’ wishes became more important than parents’? Maybe college life changed the dynamics of relationships; I became closer to friends. I, too, remember that there were some groups of people in school also who used to make me feel special by wishing me at home on the phone. Some bonds became stronger with time, some weakened.

It ended up like this at night. Was I expecting another call? Yes. Did I feel bad when I did not get it? Not much. Was it so because you were not close enough or you console by saying that you’re relieved from one hell of future responsibilities, or were you matured enough? Probably the reason was mixed of above all.

In the morning, someone starts with wishing on a group, and people follow. Did I want someone to initiate it? Yes, so severely that had this possible, I would have wished myself from someone else’s account. Then some people wish in a private message, some on the group and some on both. Yes, I like the third one; they increase count. :p Does the private message have more impact than a group message? Probably, yes.

Then few realized it later in the day that it was my birthday and had they knew it earlier; they would have wished early. They felt sorry, and I felt good that there are more people there than you thought.

Now let’s come to cliché but an important aspect of Birthday: cake cutting. As I grew old, I started realizing this part as too childish. But contrary to my thoughts, this time I did not feel so. 

One more profound observation was that earlier, I used to get a great number of messages on Facebook. But not now. The new generation has moved on to Instagram. Probably I was late in joining it. Most of the wishes on Fb were from my school/college professors, mentors. Have I already lacked from the current generation?

I think a birthday is one event where you can monitor your social life. Counts of wishes, gifts might not be the parameter to judge it, but it gives a rough estimate. But will this remain so? My parents don’t see their Birthdays the same way as I do. Will this day loose relevance when other more important thing starts coming into life or is it a generation change, and birthdays will retain their importance?