of birthdays and cakes and ice cream

yesterday, two members of the family celebrated their birthday.

my father turned 58, while my niece turned 8.

the celebration was simple and the guests, few. there was the traditional lechon (roast pig), cake and ice cream for my niece. i myself, when i used to be her age did not miss out on such traditions. the blow-the-candles part was my all-time favorite because i get to make a wish in my mind and everyone would wonder what i wished for.

but to me, birthdays really mean a time for looking back at the has been, for assessing the now and for moving forward to the future.

as i am nearing the day when i get to add a year more to my birthday, i will not be fussing about cakes and ice cream. it's way different now than before. but i guess, that's the way it is. i think about the past and i realize how distant those times are and yet they often remain so vivid in one's mind. i think about the future and it scares the hell out of me knowing that sometime later, a fork will be stuck on my road. i think about now and i realize that time is ticking and before i knew it (even before i finish typing this), it's history.

and if i continue blabbering here, i may make history tomorrow when called for recitation and i have nothing sensible to say.

so there, happy birthdays to my tatay and niece.