Birthdays are such strange creatures.
I suppose everyone believes so, in one way or the other, but I have decided to bore you with my own personal reasons.
Now, you may be wondering why thought of this in the first place, and why in the world I would waste the time to write a paper about it. That is an excellent question, and I suppose the answer is that writing down a fragment of an idea often helps you grasp the rest of the concept. I write this for my own benefit, and hope you learn something from it.
My Birthday is March 26th. That is the day it will be this year. That is the day it was last year, the year before, and every year for the past 15 years. But the funny thing about my birthday, is every year, once it is past, my next birthday seems ages away. In April it seems ages away, in May as well, June and July pass, same result, August and September, October and November, and finally December goes whizzing by, and then, BAM!
It’s January.
Holy cow, it’s two months till my birthday.
Every time I have a birthday, I recall moments where I would fantasize being the age that I had just become. Turning 10, and finally having a double digit age. Turning 12, and finally being able to compete in speech and debate, (which actually didn’t happen till much later) 13, when I became a man, 15 (at which age, when I was 10, I hoped to be married) and now, 16. And honestly, I don’t remember what I fantasized about being 16, mainly because I’m too afraid to try to remember.
But the funny thing about turning each of those ages, is it was never what I imagined. And it never felt different.
People often joke on their birthdays that they don’t feel a year older. That’s probably because they’re not. They’re just a day older. “Yes Isaac, everyone knows that,” you say. Yes, I know. But it makes me think. If the aging happens every day, than growth does too.
No, I don’t mean physical growth, though that may very well be the case. I mean maturing. When I was younger, I looked forward to reaching certain ages because of the man I envisioned being then. I thought there was a connection between the age, and the maturity. But the truth is maturity is just like aging. It happens every day. Or it doesn’t. Aging happens whether we like it or not, but maturity is something we must strive for. If I dream of being 18, I must grow in maturity to become the man that I want to be at that age. Every day, I am becoming the person I will be in the future.
By God’s grace, and perseverance, we can become the men and women that we hope and dream to be at 18, 21, 30, 40, 50, or 80. By making the most of the day before you. After all, days become weeks, weeks become months, and months become years. I want to go to bed every night and ask myself, “What did I do today to become who I want to be at 18?” God can make it happen.
Happy Maturing Day.
