Please, no matter how many years you have lived, do not bemoan turning another year older. Not only is it an insult to Life itself, but you are choosing to look at the dark side of age. It will always be there if you look for it, but so will the bright side.

Just ask Gail.

Gail celebrated her 65th birthday in grand style on February 21st in her small town in western Kansas. It was a good crowd to help celebrate her 65 year mark.

Just a mere five years ago, just before the world shut down due to COVID, we rang in her 60th year in grand style as well. Mercifully, her birthday was in late February. Had it been just a few weeks later, the gathering may have been prohibited.

Her youthfully energetic daughter Lydia helped plan and carry out that party, and she was the ringleader again this time, organizing this soiree five years later.

The event was held at a downtown gathering place. Clearly, a fun time was had by all. Being the early-to-bed type, I didn’t stay until the wee hours as many of them did, but the report was that a great time was indeed had by all. Suzanne was not able to come, the winter flu was taking its toll on her. Two of our brothers were tending to calving on the farm and the other two could only be there in spirit, so I was the lone sibling there to help her celebrate.

Many hands make light work, as the axiom goes. The clean-up the next day was a party of its own, as several guests came back to help restore the venue to it’s pre-party state. And just because it’s the morning after, that doesn’t mean the party is over for Gail.

The party is never really over for Gail, and that is a great thing.

At age 65, many people are winding down their working lives toward retirement. That is a great thing, too, but not for everyone. Especially not for Gail. She will continue to keep all those plates spinning in the air, and will enjoy every minute of it. She will more likely continue to re-fire, continuing to get fired up about all that life sends her way. She will continue to work with a smile on her face, likely until she can no longer work or smile, which, will likely be her last day on earth.

I pray that day is not before she celebrates her 100th birthday.

This Tuesday, March Fourth, will mark the 17th anniversary of our parents’ deaths. Mom and Dad were 71 and 73, and we would have given anything we had to have many more years with them.

Our time to go is not ours to decide, so whatever time we are given should be treated like the gift that it is. As we, their seven children continue to March Forth to carry on their legacies of love and kindness, we have learned this hard lesson. Still, we all need reminders sometimes to make the most of every day and celebrate occasions small and large. It seems life–and death–have a way of continuing to offer us this lesson, with opportunities presented every day to learn if we simply pay attention to them.

Gail’s birthday was one such opportunity. A large one. I will celebrate my 59th birthday next month and Suzanne will celebrate her 55th birthday in August. We will use those opportunities to celebrate somehow, and we whenever we can, the sisters of The Sister Lode get together to do just that.

Another trip around the sun should always be celebrated. When your next birthday comes around, think of Gail and celebrate in your own special way, because it is indeed a gift that should always be opened.

Thank you to every one of the multitude of Gail’s friends who helped her celebrate, and special thanks to one of our most devoted readers, her friend Cathy.