BTW Birthdays

by Latasha Willis
December 2, 2009

Yeah, you guessed it, my birthday's in December. It's on the 21st to be exact, which sometimes falls on the first day of winter—the shortest day of the year. I was born on my late grandfather's birthday, and every year he gave me a dollar. (No matter how old I got, I still got a dollar.)

When I tell people when my birthday is, the response is usually enthusiastic and full of wonder as if "Jingle Bells" played and tinsel fell from the sky as I exited my mother's womb, and I'm sure my mother would tell you it did not happen that way. However, I don't share their enthusiasm as my birthday happens to fall during the biggest holiday season of the year—Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa and anything else that has to do with lighting a lot of candles.

A lot of people with December birthdays feel overlooked. Although I do get a few birthday wishes and an occasional gift, every once in a while I feel as if my birthday is playing second fiddle to all of the other gift-giving festivities. Fortunately, I don't have to suffer alone because my older sister, my mother, my godfather, my godsister (and her sister) and my nephew all have December birthdays. It's one jam-packed month for my family, that's for sure. Sometimes I wished that my birthday was in August, the only month of the year with no major holiday.

Some of you may be wondering what the big deal is, but if you haven't experienced what we December babies deal with every year, you don't understand our plight. Let me give you a glimpse of what we endure:

• You are given a combination Christmas/birthday gift.

• Loved ones often says they will get you a birthday gift sometime after Christmas because he or she is broke from buying Christmas gifts. Then, the person forgets to give you the gift.

• You sometimes forget your own birthday because you are too busy buying Christmas gifts for everyone else.

• When someone throws you a birthday party (lucky you), they use leftover Christmas decorations or some sort of red and green combination on everything.

• People tell you, "Oh yeah, by the way, happy birthday!" as if it was an afterthought.


See what I mean? Here are some simple ways to make your friend or loved one with a December birthday feel extra special:

• Be sure to write down the person's birthday in big, bold letters on your calendar, and send yourself reminders via Outlook, etc., to make sure you don't forget his or her special day.

• When the big day comes, make a big deal of it and shower the person with affection.

• Make the person feel as if his or her birthday is worth celebrating.

• If you give the person a birthday gift, stress the fact that it is strictly a birthday gift. We December babies detest Christmas/birthday gifts. Not only is it inconsiderate, but it makes you look cheap.

• Give the person a birthday party with no holiday theme. My nephew's birthday is a little over two weeks before Christmas, so when he turned 1 last year, my sister gave him a Elmo-themed birthday party on Christmas Day in a room separate from the Christmas tree and the presents.

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