Birthdays
Today was the kick-off event for Relay for Life at The College of Staten Island. One slogan for the American Cancer Society is “create a world with less cancer and more birthdays”. I am one of millions of people who have been affected by cancer in some shape or form; my grandfather passed away due to cancer in his kidneys and my grandmother is currently battling the disease. Friends of mine have had parents, siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles who have passed away because of cancer. Needless to say, cancer is a terrible illness, and I hope to see a world with less cancer. While cancer warrants a great amount of attention, I would like to talk about birthdays.
No, I’m not dreaming wistfully of presents and birthday cake, or of dance parties and balloons. I love to…celebrate my loved ones, and birthdays are the perfect day to do so. I’m not talking about throwing huge gatherings or buying expensive gifts. No, a person’s birthday should be about them; what they did over the past year, what they would like to do in the year ahead of them, the ups and downs they’ve experienced, and the people that defined it. I try to make it a point to tell family and friends how important they are to me on their birthdays, whether I’ve known them for weeks or years.
As I think about it, I wonder…why just on birthdays? Why can’t we take the time to appreciate everyone in our lives at every possible moment? Who knows where they’ll be five years, months, weeks, or even days from now? If you’re lucky, you can spend a lot of time with them and have some amazing memories. 
It’s difficult when we don’t get to see someone so often; I haven’t been able to visit my grandmother in five years. I want to see her show me her collection of photos showing my family’s smiling faces. I want another chance to try to refuse the rupee coins she places in my hand as we depart for the airport. I didn’t get this last chance with my grandfather. I wish I could have seen him one last time, just like I wish I’ll see my grandma at least one more time. I wish I got the chance to know them better, so I could appreciate them even more.
Appreciation for someone shouldn’t stop when they leave your life. But if you love someone, you should let them know. Although we may all just be ordinary people, one should never underestimate the power of a single person’s love. You could make a person’s week if you show them how much you care about them, and you wouldn’t even realize it. Loving in such an open capacity is difficult though, which can make expressing your feelings rather difficult. So let’s start with birthdays, and take it from there.
