How I Created a Birthday “Party” during a Pandemic

Birthdays have always been a big deal for me. The culture of celebrating birthdays, holidays, proms, graduations, summer weekends with local and out-of-state family is a tradition I will carry on in my own family one day. I can remember the joy I felt while eating hotdogs, Utz chips and homemade cake with my cousins on my birthdays when I was in elementary school. Since I am a winter baby (#teamaquarius), I also remember being snowed in on a few birthdays, but filled with love from all of the calls with heartfelt birthday wishes.

This year is unlike any other I’ve experienced. There is no blizzard to postpone the festivities or plans for an island getaway or even my traditional dinner with my girls. It is the year I create a party in a pandemic and I won’t lie, I am lamenting what was while looking forward to celebrating in a new way.

This has been a tough year for this Type-A personality and socialite, who thrives on stability, plans and organization. It’s been difficult dealing with so much loss, uncertainty, rejection, anxiety and depression. I am coming out of a valley season in my life and I feel more like myself, but I can’t do the things I normally do for my birthday.

However, I recognize when opportunity is knocking at my door and this time it came in the form of creativity. One of the best realizations I’ve made while going through this pandemic is that we can find a way, or make a way, to do anything. Once I answered, creativity implored me to redefine my party and get to the business of celebrating in the midst of one of the most difficult times in my life.

Webster’s Dictionary defines party as a social gathering. I’ve redefined it as a spiritual gathering and decided to gather the people, things and vibes (socially distanced of course) that feed my spirit. Here’s what I did to create joy on my birthday during the pandemic.

I set intentions for joy. At the start of this year, I decided to set intentions instead of New Year’s resolutions. I actually stopped making New Year’s resolutions years ago and instead set goals and created a vision board. This year, I wanted to implement a daily practice in my life that incorporates prayer and meditation and I feel like setting intentions does that for me. I set intentions for joy and the way that differs from resolutions and goals is that I get in touch with how I will feel, see, do and be once those intentions are met. I asked myself what did joy look, feel, smell, taste and sound like. I then took the steps to create those vibes for my birthday (and everyday depending on what I feel I need to focus on).

I enjoyed a socially distanced soiree fit for a foodie. I started a healthy lifestyle journey the second week of December 2020 and had quite a few starts and stops before I got totally serious three weeks ago. I am now eight pounds down and counting, but more importantly, my mindset about health and my relationship with food has changed for the better. I say all that to say I had to have some great (not so healthy) food for my birthday. I’m feeding my spirit by feeding the foodie in me with what she wants. I’ll get back on my healthy habits tomorrow.

I included something I love to do on the gift wish list. In my blog, 3 Ways to Make the Best of a COVID Christmas, I talked about the importance of making it a priority to incorporate the things you love in your life while going through a pandemic. One of the things I love to do is take pictures. So, once again, I told my significant other, who is a photographer, I wanted to take some pictures when he asked me what I wanted for my birthday. He went above and beyond and gifted me with a photo shoot and not the iPhone shoots we usually do, he created a professional shoot for me and I had a wonderful time. All of the pictures on this post were done during my birthday photo shoot.

My spiritual gathering has given me everything I wanted for my special day: joy, peace, love gratitude. I am celebrating with zest, joy and gratitude this year. Although it will look, feel and be different because of the COVID-19 pandemic, I am more grateful than ever to have life.