Living in a material world

Another birthday has come and gone. I certainly feel old, but that's not necessarily the calendar's fault. All of my family and several of my friends called with birthday wishes, and I was thrilled and a bit shocked at a few who actually remembered. What shocked me the most, though, was that my birthday was not acknowledged by someone rather close to me.

Now I'm not a present hound by any means. Sure, presents are fun, but I have always preferred giving the perfect gift over waiting for ones given to me. I spend a lot of time pondering gifts, and I am known for being a good gift giver. It's not that I spend a lot of money- I just like to find unique things that are meaningful and specific to the person for whom they are given. When I go on trips, I like to bring things back for special people just to let them know I was thinking of them when I was away. It's not the gift, I figure- It's the THOUGHT.

Needless to say, I spent a lot of time working on a birthday for my special someone when it was time for his birthday. I thought it had all of the elements of a great girlfriend gift- it was meaningful, it was unique, and it was from the heart. I'm not sure how it went over; He seemed to like it, but it's often hard to tell. I brought him mementos from my trips this summer just so he would know I was thinking of him.

So, what, you may ask, did he give me for my birthday? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. No card. No note. Nada. Believe me when I say that I would have been THRILLED to have gotten a card with a nice note inside. I would have been thrilled with anything because he's never written anything to me, never given anything to me. It's bothering me more than it should, perhaps, but there are times when it is indeed the thought that counts. This is an instance when the thought definitely would have counted for all that and more.

I don't believe that it's materialistic of me to want to be remembered on my birthday. I know he doesn't put much stock in birthdays, but he knows that they are special to me.

My plan now is to get myself a present and pretend that it is from him. I may even wrap it. I don't think I can go so far as to write a card, though. So guys, write your gals a note every now and then. Buy her a token of your affection- It doesn' t have to be much, and if it does have to be much, then she isn't the kind of girl you want.