Birthday gratitude

I've officially turned a year older and rather than be solemn about the occasion I'm celebrating. Dinner, cake and cocktails with people I love. In past years I haven't always met my birthday with welcome arms. This year feels different.

I'm grateful to see another day.

I'm grateful to reach an age many others don't.

I'm grateful to have another day to enjoy being alive.

The last few months of 2016 were difficult for my family. My Aunt Sally died in October from cancer. We didn't know how sick she was so her passing was unexpected. I never imagined a world without her in it. She was a petite spit fire of a woman who taught my Mom, the youngest of the family, how to read. They weren't just sisters, they were best friends.

Growing up Aunt Sally was my favorite aunt and I always wanted to be just like her. To the point where I wanted my middle name to be Sally. She lived in New York City, cursed around us when we were kids and for a time lived with her boyfriend. For me she epitomized being an independent woman living in the big city, wearing fancy clothes, dining at fancy restaurants, going on great vacations, and moving through life on her terms.

I flew home for the funeral. It was my first trip to South Carolina since relocating to Seattle. While it was great, it was also bittersweet.

The following month my Mom's older brother Leroy died. A few weeks later Aunt Christine also left us. Both were suffering from illnesses. My mother lost three of her siblings in a matter of months. They were all close and this was a major blow.

(left to right) Aunt Lucille, Aunt Christine, Aunt Sally and my Mom.

The summer before she passed away Aunt Sally brought her three sisters together for a trip. The picture above is the last time the four of them would be together.

It's still hard to wrap my mind around the fact that they're all gone. I miss them all and I know the rest of my family and the people they touched mourn as well.

I think about death a lot more these days. Indeed it's a part of life. My days of feeling invincible are long gone.

Today, I'm focused on living.  

Focused on not waiting on tomorrow to do _________.

Focused on not taking anything for granted.

I'm looking forward to more birthdays and what tomorrow will bring.

"Life is for the living. Death is for the dead. Let life be like music. And death a note unsaid." -Langston Hughes