give-every-day-logo

Day #23: Give A REAL Birthday Wish (not the facebook kind)

,
Day #23: Give A REAL Birthday Wish (not the facebook kind) 1

My little sister turns 21 tomorrow.

She is smart, sweet, funny, tenderhearted, gorgeous, and one-of-a-kind (oh, and single).

I wrote her a birthday card tonight and tucked a small gift card inside. Tomorrow, I'll stick a stamp on it and send it on its way to Colorado.

What do you do for birthdays? In our culture, it seems like the customary thing is to write "Happy Birthday" on the person's Facebook wall (and leave it at that). But may I gently suggest that we take back birthdays?

The next time you see that it is going to be someone's birthday...take the time to celebrate. Send a card. Buy a gift card to a coffee shop or frozen yogurt place (even if it's only $5). Drop by their house with a strawberry cake or a loaf of bread or a bottle of wine. Do something special.

May this be the beginning of a birthday revolution. Who's with us?

11 comments on “Day #23: Give A REAL Birthday Wish (not the facebook kind)”

  1. I'm with you! I love celebrating people on their birthdays! A phone call, a real card, small gift...something to let them know they are thought of and loved. Six of my girlfriends and I typically celebrate each of our birthdays with a dinner out together. We have been doing this for about six years now and it is a highlight of our months/weeks. Hope your sister has a fantabulous day tomorrow!

    1. I just celebrated my friend's 40th birthday with a lovely all-ladies dinner. It was wonderful. I hope to have the same celebration later this year when I turn 40. Taking the time to show those we love that we care cannot be duplicated in a 20 second email or FB post!

    2. I love that tradition, Nini! What a fun thing to look forward to! Do you always go to the same restaurant? Or does the birthday girl decide?

  2. You're right, nobody sends a card or makes a call anymore. We do need to make an effort to show people we care.

  3. Amen! FB congratulations for any kind of milestones and mass texts on holidays should be illegal...lets take back the birthdays (etc...!)

  4. I'm all about the personal card in the mail or going out to dinner for something special... however, I limit this to close friends and family since I have over 400 friends on facebook! I don't feel bad about leaving a birthday wish on a college friend's wall etc. Without facebook I probably would never have known it was their birthday anyway!

  6. We're big on sending snail mail cards. My husband especially is known for it! It always makes me smile when we receive a card in the mail.

  7. Definitely! I'm in - I insist that we have birthday dinners with all the local family and/or a friend or two for both of our kids birthdays and my husbands birthday. My birthday doesn't work out very well - but usually my sister-in-law has us over and makes homemade chicken and dumplings for me :)

    I mail cards too - but they are usually late - gotta work on that one!

    1. I need to work on the same thing! My cards are almost always late. That said, I definitely think the phrase "better late than never" applies. ;)

Our family spent 2011 traveling the USA in an RV, striving to intentionally "give every day" for the glory of God. We interviewed CEOs of nonprofits and served alongside over 40 organizations and churches.

Our Pledge

We hereby pledge:

- To spend intimate, quantity time with our family.
- To actively help the poor, the sick, the lonely, and the helpless.
- To value, protect, and advocate for children.
- To de-emphasize the importance of “stuff” in our lives.
- To bring publicity to good causes and good people.
- To live with intentionality, as if this year was our very last.
- To observe the needs in our country/community – and then do something about them.
- To give – every day.

Copyright ©2024 · All Rights Reserved