delara, interrupted

"So, how does it feel to be thirty?" I'm still not sure how to react to this question. One reality is that one day doesn't really feels that different from the previous unless something outwardly significant happens - like your best friend announces she's getting married or your parents say they're divorcing or you slip and fall on ice and break your tailbone. Ouch. My birthday was not like that, though.

But another reality is that inward occurrences can be just as if not more significant in one's life than outward events. That's kind of what turning thirty was like - something inward. Like a new realization - a good realization and appreciation - of possibilities, of timing, of all the things I have experienced or done in my life, of all the people I have had the fortune to know and love and call my friends. It was like a deep sense of gratitude.

And that's really what my birthday was about. Especially the friends part. I am so lucky to have the friends I have! And this most certainly includes my mom and my Paulie. As a small example, several of them came over early on the birthday bash day (which was actually a few days before my actual birthday) and decorated the place like you would not believe! And they cooked up a storm! And my wonderful angel of a husband went and bought my favorite cake - German chocolate cake. There is something viscerally satisfying to me about eating German chocolate cake! Even the gifts that people brought were touched with love and thoughtfulness. And it was just such an amazingly fun and special birthday party - there was so much love and fun in the air it was palpable. Very cool.

Everyone should experience a moment or two in their life just like that one. How does it feel to turn thirty? Amazing and wildly fun.