By Sunday was my birthday. Normally, birthdays mean dinner out for my favorite Mexican food. This year there was no dinner with friends. No hugging my favorite buddy who I look after often who lives next door. No anything usual. The pandemic made sure of that. I almost cried because I was overwhelmed with all the emotions I was feeling. My empathic self was completely overwhelmed.
Then I started thinking about my birthday. It required me to sit in my emotions. After saying it’s okay to feel how I feel to myself, I took a deep breath. Remembering that both mom and I came close to not being alive put everything back in proper perspective for me. I’m a literal miracle, so what if the pandemic made my birthday different this year? It doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things.
I can go get my favorite Mexican food when we get to after. I can give my brother/journey partner a hug after. For now: FaceTime/texts/phone calls will be how we connect. In all the craziness and strangeness it’s important to remember that above all else I am healthy, my family is healthy. Therefore, I am blessed. That was the perspective reset I needed on my birthday and everything else can wait until after.
