Keep it Real Wednesday
February 9, 2022
It’s not that important
Last week Rosemary’s best friend for over 90 years, Sister Anne Cecile (we call her Aunt Joy), celebrated her 95th birthday. With this birthday being her first birthday without her best friend, our family across several states made sure to send her gifts, cards, yummy treats and flowers, all surely to make it in time for her special day on February 2nd.
On February 1st, my phone rang from Aunt Joy. I answered joyously, “TODAY IS YOUR LAST DAY OF 94! Woo Hoo!! Happy Almost Birthday”.
She hesitated a little and said, “Well, actually I have a few more days”.
“What?” I said. “Your birthday is tomorrow?”
Then, the truth came out.
Aunt Joy said her birthday is actually February 4th but somewhere along the way, several decades ago, Rosemary got it mixed up and thought it was February 2nd.
I asked why she never told Rosemary she had the date wrong? She answered, “Why would I? It is just a date. What is important is that after all these years, she has never forgotten me”.
I thought about that as I hung up on the phone. For the last 23 plus years that Rosemary has lived with us, we have been celebrating Joy’s birthday on the 2nd, showering her with gifts, cards and songs on a day that was 2 days before her birthday.
When I hung up on the phone I reflected on the friendship of these ladies.
They loved each other so much, for 90 years they remembered each other’s birthdays. It wasn’t the date that mattered, it was the love the two shared for each other.
That’s pretty astounding in my book.
