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Birthday Torture
Today is my birthday. Thirty One glorious years on this Earth. All about me! Me! Me! Me! Ok, seriously now, I kid my husband that my birthday is all about me, but I promise, I’m not that narcissist. Randy, on the other hand, takes my birthday very seriously.
When we first got together, I was a little put off that he would wait until the last minute to get me a present. Literally hours before the celebration he would go out. Hey, he never forgets so I let it go. Then I found out why. The man cannot keep a secret. Well, he CAN keep a secret, but it just about drives him mad. He will ask me incessantly if I want my gift early. The answer is now and will always be “NO”. His giddiness is actually what I look most forward to every year. It’s cute. His torture is my birthday entertainment. Note: At the time I’m writing this, he has asked me no less than 18 times if I want to open my gift.
But every year on my birthday, I think back to my first birthday when we were living together. We had no money but he wanted to do something nice for me. So he went to the local taqueria. They had super cheap, but really great tacos and other authentic Mexican Food. He ordered a bunch of different things off the menu (probably by pointing) and brought them home. He spread them out on our hand me down coffee table and we shared food that we didn’t even know how to pronounce.
Then it was cake time. I really didn’t expect a cake. He told me to close my eyes. I heard him fumble around the in the kitchen and when I opened my eyes he was softly singing an off-key version of Happy Birthday. The glow of the candles flickered in his glasses and he held a plate with Little Debbie snack cakes arranged to look like a real cake. The look on his face was both pride and apologetic. Did he honestly this I would want more than that? It was perfect. And it perfectly reflected where we were in our life. Making the best with what we had and doing it together.
It’s important to me as we make our way through our life together that I remember the beginning. The story of us is far from over so remembering how it all began makes the story that much better.
