Gratitude and Joy: Christmastime Birthdays and "Ar Hyd Y Nos"

Gratitude and Joy: Day 15

I am grateful for:

Celebrations of Christmastime Birthdays
Between the start of Advent and the Epiphany, we have five birthdays in my immediate family, including my own. When I was growing up, it was only four (one of those winter babies turns three this year!), but that's still a lot of birthdays to squeeze into an already busy time around Christmas. Mine is the latest of them, so by the time we got to me, there had already been three birthdays, Christmas, and New Year's. Many people over the years have asked me if my birthday always got lost in the shuffle because it was so close to Christmas or if I didn't get birthday presents because my Christmas presents "counted" for the birthday too. This question used to surprise me, because no one in my family ever suggested any such thing. My parents always made time to make my birthday special despite what I'm sure was sometimes some fairly intense "festive fatigue." So, with gratitude to my parents for that and with a hearty "Happy Birthday!" to my mom, who kicks off our familial Christmastime birthdays today.


I feel joy when I hear:

"Ar Hyd Y Nos"
I first heard this Welsh folksong at the end of the TV adaptation of "A Child's Christmas in Wales." It's been forever associated with Christmas for me, though really it's a lullaby that's not really specifically Christmasy.