Birthday – a time to look in the mirror

What does your birthday mean to you?

Sure, there’s the celebration, the wishes, the ecards, the gifts and the party. No doubt, a birthday is a time to celebrate your life with your loved ones and be showered with gifts and wishes.

But after the last guest has left, your birthday still isn’t over.

For most of us, a birthday is also a time to collect our thoughts. At some point on our birthday, we find ourselves pondering over the course life has taken. Many set personal and professional goals for the coming year on their birthdays. Some look back at the year gone by to reevaluate their priorities. Some feel encouraged by the progress. Some have regrets. We think about the decisions in the past year – good and bad – and how they have changed our lives. A birthday is a perfect time to resolve to quit a bad habit or cultivate a good one.

A birthday represents a milestone. Each year, you turn a corner and are a changed person. You have learnt more, seen more, experienced more of life. How do we consciously ensure these changes reflect in the way we lead the rest of the year and our lives?

A birthday is a reminder that we have been given the gift of yet another year of life. Which is why we celebrate it.  But while the memory of the celebrations may fade away, the moments we spend alone, reflecting and planning the road ahead, stay with us and shape our lives.

So, when you look in the mirror this birthday, what will you see?