Celebrations

愛、生活、人生系列

Celebrations
It seems that many people only mark their birthdays and anniversaries. However, it’s important that we celebrate all of our milestones and major accomplishments, though. Celebrating gives us a sense of achievement, and it’s a great way of rewarding ourselves for a job well done. To truly celebrate, we have to have a good reason. Otherwise, it’s just a party. A celebration has to be about something. Thus, we celebrate when we have an accomplishment we want to share with others. We have pride in the fact that we’ve accomplished something—we’ve graduated, finished a major project, or received a promotion. The emotions that go along with these accomplishments fuel our celebration. Celebrating is a part of the reward of a job well done. It doesn’t necessarily mean that we go out every single time when we accomplish something. We can have a celebration all by ourselves. It can be having a dessert or a glass of wine. We can celebrate by buying ourselves something new or something we’ve wanted for a while but still didn’t spend the money on. A celebration is our reward, and we deserve it. Any celebration, big or small, is really about taking a beat to notice the good stuff in our lives. It can also be a reminder of our talents and abilities, skills and persistence. Drawing on those things can motivate us to keep working toward our goals. These moments of celebration make us pause and be mindful, and boost our well-being. When we have something to look forward to, or when we look ahead to something worth celebrating, we feel more optimistic. Further, when we celebrate after a success, small or big, it helps us by reminding us of the personal hard work we put out, and all the people and opportunities that paved the way for our success. Pausing to celebrate before going on to the next step of our lives fosters a sense of gratitude in us. We are happy and thankful for where we stand in life. Even though most celebrations are hinged on the past, there’s something new that happens every year. In fact, every celebration is an opportunity to create new memories with others. Because we celebrate the past and review the present, we are given an outlook for the future. Celebrations help us pause and reflect on what will be the next best course of action. It gives us our past strengths and experiences. By celebrations, we bring with us all the good things as we move forward in life.
Of course, there will always be birthdays and big celebrations like Thanksgiving, graduations, and the fireworks of 10th of October to command our attention. And these are fun, for sure. Still, there are the mini-celebrations of the little moments that we can share our good memories. We then enjoy the moments and act like there are something big worth celebrating.
A birthday is the anniversary of the birth of a person. An individual’s birthday is celebrated by a party where a specially made cake, usually decorated with the person’s age, is presented. The cake is traditionally studded with the same number of candles as the age of the individual. Candles are placed on top of the cake. As we light the candles, “Happy Birthday to You” is sung. The celebrated individual will usually make a silent wish, and attempt to blow out the candles in one breath that the wish will be granted. In China, especially, a traditional Chinese birthday celebration for any age starts with families eating longevity noodles. The long noodle symbolizes a long and prosperous life! Moreover, anniversaries, too, offer the wonderful opportunity for us to relive beautiful memories, practice gratefulness for our partners and friends, and show our love to them. We all cherish celebrations of birthdays and anniversaries.
As a matter of fact, as humans, we are instinctively driven to honor the significant moments in our lives. There are deep underlying needs that drive us to engage in celebrations. As a result, we have found so many wonderful ways to meet these needs and create more meanings in our lives. There are some significant benefits that we won’t miss while celebrating. One of the most opportune times to bond with our families and friends is during special occasions. Whether we come together to celebrate happy occasions such as a bridal shower or a more somber occasions, such as a funeral, we get a chance to connect with those we love and care about on a deeper and more profound level. Besides, the unique rituals and practices that highlight important milestones, such as weddings, graduations or birthdays all serve an important purpose. We all create lasting fond memories. In other words, celebrations are so great, and can be incredibly fun. They provide us with the perfect opportunities to engage in the joys of life, such as dance, song, food, play and laughter. Who doesn’t look forward to the fun-filled occasions where we can let our hair down, and take a break from our mundane existence? The little kid within us still relishes in the excitement of an upcoming celebration, and this is an emotion that we deserve to indulge in as adults as well.
Finally, when we commemorate special occasions, we are essentially connecting with our humanity and the commonality that we share with all those who have been long gone before us. We tap into the timelessness of the human spirit when we take the time to pay respect to the important rites of passages that were celebrated by our ancestors. Life is meant to be a journey of highs and lows; it’s also meant to excite us and feels more alive. Celebrations just do that. A life devoid of any celebration really seems dull, boring, and repetitive. Therefore, celebrations are not a waste of time. They help us keep a good, balanced way of life.

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