Let it be said now that my previous birthdays (the past 19 of them) haven't been much of a big affair, to me at least.
How so?
Well, for you see, all the past birthdays I’ve had the pleasure of having UNDOUBTEDBLY pales in comparison with the birthday celebration (or what bizarrely passes for one) of the year 2011.
So, what say we take a trip down memory line so as to give a context to my exact words.
Seeing as how my birthdays, or the occasions on which they were celebrated, were usually thrown to me by my family every year, it was more of a family affair. As the years went by, and as I progressed from early adolescence into my teenage years, my birthdays were pretty much celebrated the same way, as if in strict adherence to an unwritten tradition of sorts.
Nevertheless, my parents were always the first to instigate plans for my birthday parties. As they secretly schemed, my close friends would also be included in the thick of things. So naturally, they would always be invited to parties courtesy of my parents. As the cycle goes on and on, it became a norm for my friends to always wait for the birthday invitations and go along with the festivities as planned out by my parents.
To sum it all up, I never quite gotten to experience a birthday celebration as thrown to me by my friends in the name of friendship and camaraderie. Sometimes, I feel taken for granted as a friend of theirs, and I understand that it is by no fault of theirs. My parents, the most loving and caring people of whom I cherish most, kind of did spoil my friends where my birthday parties were concerned.
As college came knocking on the front door, as it does with all young adults, I heeded its call and found myself in Shah Alam with a whole new bunch of great people and even greater friends.
New faces, new acquaintances, new environment and practically a brand new life.
I can finally start over. See what it’s like to experience a birthday as thrown to me by the initiative of my friends. A festivity especially for me, not as per the request of my parents, but out of the goodness and kindness of the bonds of camaraderie we share.
Today, I somewhat got that wish. Not just in a small trickle of goodness but a whole friggin’ wave of it crashed all over me. I was inundated with the compassion and kindness shown by these new friends. And the very circumstances surrounding this beautiful day accented it only further.
And boy, was it the best feeling ever. In fact, I literally feel as though I could die now and die a happy man. But heck, then I’d be unable to enjoy the awesome presents.
Oh, did I mention? The final DLC for Mass Effect 2 releases on the date my BIRTHDAY no less. Whee~~
Aptly named Arrival, and arriving hot on the heels of my birthday, that speaks volumes of awesome right there. Must be Bioware’s birthday gift to me. =D =D
Also, 8 am classes for Physics (the Kryptonite to my Superman) on Tuesday was postponed. Another gift to add to my litany of presents!
Speaking of presents, my best bud Bryan Kho has a gift up his sleeves and he's really keeping mum about it.
Wonder what he’s got planning for me this time. The only clue he left was this cryptic message:
“Starts with a ‘p’ and ends with a ‘s’. Start guessing.”
Pies? Playstation…..3s? And oh, I will literally keel him if it involves a phallic-shaped organ of the human anatomy.
Special ‘thanks’ also go out to this sohai here, Howard Chung. I’ve had plenty of unique and sometimes unorthodox birthday presents and wishes in the past, but what he’s given me definitely takes the cake.
FYI: Howard, NO. I don’t need a new birthday suit. Thank you very much.
Also, the chocolate mud cake that I think the entire ATUSA members got for Marie and I meant a lot. I believe it’s the first time my friends took the initiative to get a cake for me to mark this significant milestone.
While I absolutely loved the cake, I’m loving more of the thoughts that came with the gifting of the cake.
As if the day couldn’t have gotten any better, it pleasantly did.
Come dinner time and I was off to the nearby Secret Recipe to catch up with the rest of the MINDS members and committee. Feasting on meals fit for kings, exchanging witty and often times ridiculous banter, and just plain having a good time, it made me realize just how much I missed being in MINDS.
The presence of such awesome guys and girls truly made MINDS an incredible and integral part of my college life, despite the short-lived tenure of President in the club.
Still, I took home with me many wonderful revelations and epiphanies, courtesy of none other than the uber-hip and infallibly hilarious Aysha Khan.
Humpty Dumpty and the Wall Street Crash? A quest for Blue Cheese? The night doesn’t get any more epic than that.
The day was truly more than the sum of its parts. Frankly, I can’t quite recall a day like today whereupon I could just sit back and have everything work out the way I wanted it to. To put in short, I was beyond happiness at this point. A feeling that today was my day and nothing was ever going to go wrong at all.
All in all, a big hearty thank you goes out to all who have, in one way or another, made this already wonderful day, so much more special and endearing. Thanks to all who have proven to me that birthdays are truly indeed a day to call your own, and a day to be celebrated LIKE A BOSS.
It’s officially been 2 decades now that I’ve been brought into this world. And it’s been a long wait for the birthday gift that I’ve always wanted.
Today, on the Tuesday of the 29th of March, 2011, I’ve finally, finally gotten that gift of mine I’ve been forever wishing for. Mind you, it’s one I’m going to be cherishing for the rest of my life.
So, I thank you God for breathing life into me and this world and all that in between, and here’s looking forward to many more awesome birthday bashes to come!
