I must admit that last year my birthday was pretty much a bust. I had been in a foreign country for three weeks, had no internet, no phone, and no one to celebrate with. It was lonely. This year, I had an entirely different experience.
I got the present Jared sent me a day early, along with a note instructing me to pick up another package at the post office. On the big day itself, I brought cookies that Shannon, Diana and I had baked and iced for the children. Remember in school, how you used to bring cupcakes for all the kids in your class on your birthday? That's how German birthday celebrations seem to work, so I made sure we had enough cookies for all 25 kids, plus all the staff, and also for my department at the zoo. I found the tables at the kindergarten all decked out with candles and a “happy birthday” sign, and one kid handed me a heart he had colored and cut out.
The kids gathered around the table and sang “happy birthday” and then my favorite German birthday song, and helped me blow out the candles on the table. There is a chant that translates roughly “she'll live the high life” after which, the birthday person is hoisted, still seated in the birthday chair, into the air three times. This is easy with children, but kindergarten teachers aren't known for being a burly bunch, so we joked that we would have to skip the hoisting part for me, but the four-year-old sitting next to me declared, “I'm strong enough!” so we faked it. One child asked me if I was ten now, or would I be ten next year, and then insisted I show her how old I was using my fingers.
Shannon and Diana gave me gummi bears (they know me well after a year together!) and a new webcam, probably to shut me up, since I'd been complaining about my malfunctioning one for weeks. In the afternoon I took more cookies to the keepers when it was our coffee break and set them out on a platter. I had not mentioned my birthday, so when the first keeper came in, he teased, “Wow, what's with all the cookies? Is it Christmas, or your birthday?” They enjoyed the cookies and one of them snuck out for a few minutes and returned with a stuffed rhino. It was very sweet and by this time, after the celebration at the school, plus some flowers and a gift certificate to the mall from some parents, I was pretty much elated.
On the way home, I stopped at the post office and collected my mystery parcel that contained a care-package from my sister and her husband. I am listening to the CD they sent as I write this blog, and I have already eaten at least 25% of the graham crackers they sent (did you know they don't have graham crackers in Germany? They don't really have milkshakes either, but those don't ship well). There were also emails wishing me a happy birthday in my inbox, which I read with the stuffed rhino by my side. A little later I went out for drinks with Diana and her roommates to a small pub where a guitarist played some live music. At the end of the night, he announced, “I'd like to wish a girl who is far from home a happy birthday. So, Suzanne, from America, I wish you the best!” I called back, “Thank you!” and he said, “Can I tell the crowd how old you are, or is it a secret?” I said, “I'm 29!” and he said, “I know, but is it a secret?!
Perhaps it is a little self-indulgent to revel in one's birthday as I did this year, but I really enjoyed the attention. Maybe since I didn't have much of a birthday last year, I was narcissistic enough for two years this time. Next year maybe I'll tone it down and not be like an excited six-year-old about my birthday. Of course, next year I'll be 30, so maybe I'll celebrate even more extravagantly. My next mission is to repay the people here who made this day special, and who have been so great to be around this past year. I am at a loss when I consider what I should give to my department at the zoo when I leave in December. They have been so kind and understanding and I would like to give something to the department that they can use or that would remind them of me. But what?
Aside from my birthday, we are hastily getting ready for our conference in Romania, and next week the kindergarteners start swimming lessons at the community pool. The days are passing in a bit of a blur, and I certainly can't complain of boredom. I have been clearing up my accounts and speaking broken German to the internet provider, my cell phone provider, and playing helpless foreigner at the bank.
The weather here has turned into what we Northwesterners know as “winter.” But forecasts for Bucharest predict sunny and 65 degrees.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment