The Un-Celebration

February 23, 2017

It's nothing to be ashamed of, but it's still in my best interest to keep some of the details to myself. So I'll just cut to the chase. Today is my wife's birthday, and we are celebrating by me going to my bass lesson in Fredonia while she heads in the opposite direction to attend a basketball game in Panama. We will cap the evening's festivities by having three of our grandchildren over for the night. In case you haven't noticed, we know how to party!

A few years ago, going two different directions on our birthdays would have raised questions about priorities, but one of the benefits of being married for nearly 47 years is that we've gotten beyond that. We know what the priorities are: the grandkids! But to appease the romantics who might chance upon this little article, I'll put your minds at ease with a bit more information: I took her to lunch at one of our favorite spots, the Liberty Grill in Fredonia. We had barely sat down when the cook came out to wish her a happy birthday. He is a young man she had in her special ed class years ago, and had seen her birthday notice on Facebook. They talked for a bit, and we started on our lunch when the waitress came up and asked if I weren't Rev. Bailey. That can be a loaded question, but she looked friendly enough, so I answered in the affirmative, whereupon she said that she had attended the funeral at which I officiated yesterday, and complimented me on it. It was to say the least, an interesting birthday luncheon.

So there you have it; a Bailey birthday celebration. It's about as ordinary as you could get, but that's the point. After so many years together, every day is a celebration of love and commitment. The mountain peaks are still fun, but they aren't necessary to prove our love. The fact is, there is nothing to prove, only to demonstrate, and that is an every day activity. If it were not so, we wouldn't be celebrating this day together (more or less, anyway). But we are, and for that, I am thankful today.