KC's Birthday Story

Every year on my birthday, I have a party. It’s a cheaper way to celebrate, compared to treating all my friends to a restaurant or a round of drinks. Yes, I’m proud to say, that I do have lots of friends. Some close, others closer. Anyway, this year though, I wanted a quiet, more personal April 16. No, it has nothing to do with turning 31. I never had a “why, God, why!” (Joey Tribianni-Friends) moment every time I get older. I was actually a bit concerned about that. Should I feel my age?(Because I don’t) Should I “plan” stuff? (I never do.) Should I start wearing age-appropriate clothes? (But they’re soo boring!)

I digress. Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that, I opted for a quiet birthday because I wanted to reflect on turning older. The day wasn’t as quiet as it unfolded—with two separate sets of friends surprising me with a birthday shindig and my brothers borrowing a videoke machine.

But I found a little time for myself before all the parties started. I tried a new café, ordered chai, and read Birthday Stories, a collection of well, birthday short stories by Haruki Murakami.

The introduction was funny. Haruki narrated a birthday incident where he heard his birthday being announced on the radio as an “event” for that day. He found it a little discomfiting that his birthday is considered a national “event”. He also talked about how pleased he was when he found out that he shared a birthday with author Jack London—Haruki likes his work and he felt a connection with the creator of The Call of the Wild and White Fang. Well, they both are literary geniuses so I get the connection. To celebrate, Haruki drinks a glass of Jack London wine on his birth date, a Cabernet Sauvignon, made in a vineyard not far from Jack London’s own estate.

I wanted that kind of connection. I guess, to get some pathetic confirmation of how special I could be. There are a couple of famous people I share my special day with. The likes of basketball great Kareem Adbul Jabbar, Charlie Chaplin, Selena, Shu Qui, and even Japanese Pop singer Bonnie Pink. She sang It’s Gonna Rain—the lovely song playing during the closing credits of Samurai X.

They were people I like and even admire but, they don’t satisfy the bond I wanted to form. I wanted good wine and instead I’m getting, I don’t know—ice cold beer. I dug a bit more and came up with Nobel Prize for Literature Anatole France. I am now currently trying to look for his works.

I’m not sure if Anatole and I will be kindred spirits but I like one of his quotes:

“Wandering re-establishes the original harmony which once existed between man and the universe.”