Member-only story
POETRY
What Do You Do On Birthdays?
Haiku + Freestyle writing
Another year passed
me by and yet I don’t know
how to celebrate
Today, I turned 33 years old, and I don’t know how I feel about that. On the one hand, I am thrilled to have made it this far and have what I hope is a long life ahead of me. But, on the other hand, I really don’t know how to celebrate the big day.
As a teenager, I always knew what to do. Throw a party, buy an outfit that shows my figure, change my hairstyle, and stunt. Every year, I took off work and insisted that my family members make time to do something fun with me.
Fun is a core value to me. If I cannot have it, I start to feel odd. But the coronavirus messed up last year for me. I don’t even remember what I did to celebrate last time. Also, sometime this past year, I could have sworn I was already 33. But, yet here we are.
Now, I am no longer that teenager or twenty-something girl who enjoyed going out in the same way. I’m still learning what the adult version of me likes and doesn’t like now that I’m married, cannot take off for every birthday, and have a virtual academic residency to attend this evening.
