in inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife

[harborshore]

Yesterday was my birthday. Ten years ago, I was very ill (I had a fairly serious case of mono) and home from school and spent a couple of hours not knowing if my best friend was alive or not. I was lucky that day. So many people were not. Eight years ago I had just started college and I woke to find out our foreign minister had been murdered.

It's a little strange, having your birthday be 9/11. For more than one reason.

And yet, yesterday was a birthday like any others. A really wonderful one. My parents, sweethearts as they are (the most wonderful), came by with breakfast and a mixer and a giftcard for my favorite bookstore in Stockholm. Mom cried, I cried, dad cried. There were a lot of hugs.

In the evening, I saw relatives and a couple of friends at a restaurant, and I got some fuzzy slippers and a yoga mat ♥ and everyone was lovely and the vegetarian buffet was great. I spent some time freaking out about my birthday in the past week (not because I'm getting older, more because, well, it's just one of those anxiety-inducing social musts) but none of my fears were warranted, it was absolutely the best. Despite having a mammoth cold, a maternal grandmother who does her very best to be bitchy, and an application to work on.

And you lot--thanks for the birthday messages and twitter congratulations and general awesomeness, I so very much appreciate it. Also, did you know torakowalski is the best? She wrote me a fic about bb!Rogue and pre-Alex/Hank and Charles and Raven and the mansion and basically about how family is what you make of it and you can choose your family, if you need to. It's wonderful. She's wonderful. Send Me The News From A House Down The Road.

That's sort of what I've ended up taking away from having my birthday on what is historically a very violent day (going a little further back, it's also the day Salvador Allende died). Love, that is. Family. Friends. A quiet reaffirmation of what is important. Part of why I like doing the work I do (youth policy work). You know. Etcetera. That sort of thing.

Comments

[blindmouse.livejournal.com]

Happy birthday! A much better anniversary than the others, my dear ♥

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

♥! That's what my dad always says too, sentimental darling that he is.

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

:) It really did.

[liketheroad.livejournal.com]

Happy belated birthday, bb! All the ♥s and hugs!

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

Hearts and hugs to YOU.

[mrsquizzical.livejournal.com]

glad you had a good birthday. many happy returns and all that. ♥

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

thank you darling!!

[sansets]

Happy belated birthday bb! September 11 must have been an A+ day for amazing people to be born, because my good friend's baby sister was also born that same day. ♥

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

♥! Yes, my former boss and darling darling friend was also born then, we send each other silly youtube links with that one Beatles song every year.

[turps33.livejournal.com]

Happy belated birthday I'm glad it was a good one <3

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

It really was, and thank you ♥

[ignipes.livejournal.com]

Glad you had a wonderful birthday, love. ♥

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

As good as they come, really, despite the cold and the job application I was working on. ♥

[jubella.livejournal.com]

When you said birthday on IM yesterday, I thought it was your sister's! You should have clarified or I would have wished you a happy one yesterday. Either way, love you, and happiest of belated birthdays. Glad you had a splendid time, darling. You deserve all the happy ones. ♥

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

Eh, it's fine, don't worry about it! Thank you ♥

[egelantier.livejournal.com]

♥

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

YOU.

[cloudlessclimes.livejournal.com]

at the very least you will always have one good thing to celebrate on this date? happy belated birthday, I'm glad it was a good one.

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's how we tend to look at it in the family ♥

[desfinado.livejournal.com]

HAPPIEST of birthdays, darling. I appreciate you SO much ♥ glad you had a good one!

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

I appreciate you TOOOOO. ♥

[morebliss.livejournal.com]

Happy birthday for yesterday. *smooch smooch*

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

Thanks, dear! Sorry about US Open, I was peeved for you.

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

Thank you ♥

[x_dark_siren_x]

I'm glad you had such a good birthday. :) I always think that, just because something so tragic and awful happened on the same day doesn't mean we can't celebrate the good things as well as remember those we lost in the way they deserve. So I'm, again, glad yours was a good one. ♥

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

Thanks, dear! ♥ And thanks for your lovely message too, I'm lost in a sea of emails or I would have replied already.

[extemporally.livejournal.com]

This is really really late but: happy birthday, bb, I'm glad you had a good one. ♥

[harborshore.livejournal.com]

It was rather fantastic :) ♥