Birthdays - Now n Then

A long long time ago when I was still in school, I used to have rip-roaring, dramatic and extremely nifty birthdays. Not that I don’t have good and gratifying birthdays now, but somehow they are less remarkable. Then our entire existence whirled around birthdays. My birthday, birthdays of friends, birthdays of friends of friends and so on.  Somehow birthdays were much more preeminent matters then. These days they are more like rerun-of-the-mill days when few people chirp in to wish you a good year ahead or a few grabby mates badger you deliriously for a party.

So back in school days, the approach of a birthday demanded ‘the victim’ to show unmitigated oblivion to the covert affairs going on and being planned all around. People who couldn’t finish their daily essentials without talking to you start keeping secrets from you and look for excuses to prevent hanging out with you too much. Everyone prefers to go shopping alone. Ouchh… that hurts,, well not really coz ‘the victim’ knows that its all actually part of a plot, of which everyone other than you is a part. They are all occupied in planning a splendid birthday. ‘The victim’ tries again and again to grab a sneak peak of all the special plans. But alas.. they are just too good. So thanks to the planning committee (almost) everything stays undercover until the final moment. And when the day comes, no matter how much you think you know these people , they never fail to surprise you.

But things are totally different when you are one of ‘the executioners’ and one of your better friends is turning older. Planning begins weeks earlier, but still the last few days pass in a hustle bustle. The most mind-wrecking part is coming up with ways and excuses to evade ‘the victim’. Then there are the more affable chunks like selecting the cake and presents. Every detail had to be planned perfectly. All in all it used to be an adventure in itself. There are so many anecdotes, so many stories which bring a smile to my face.