Birthdays are tricky things. It’s really hard to make sure that you have a good birthday. You have to rely on the people around you to remember and wish you a happy day.
Last year, my birthday wasn’t a very big deal. One of my classes remembered, they may have been the only class I’d told since I hadn’t been at site for a very long time. That class gave me some chocolate and sang to me. That weekend I had some of my friends over and cooked dinner for them. It’s generally the responsibility of the birthday boy or girl to throw their own party.
My class and I after our party
This year I tried my best to mitigate my expectations. I figured it would be better to expect very little from my birthday. That way if I everyone remembered, I would be pleasantly surprised and if everyone forgot I wouldn’t be disappointed.
After my first lesson of the day, I figured I had made the right decision. My first class, a group of 10th formers, had no idea it was anything other than an average day. The teacher I was working with didn’t mention anything either. After reminding myself five or six times that I was turning 24, not 4, I decided it didn’t matter if anyone remembered my birthday.
My birthday party from the 8th form
I couldn’t have been more wrong. As soon as the lesson ended a group of English teachers came to wish me a happy birthday and give me flowers. As they sang Happy Birthday (including the new verse: May your birthday be bright from morning to night) I realized that the cat was out of the bag. Anyone who didn’t know that it was my birthday certainly heard the singing.
For the next period I sat at my desk and waited as group after group of students came in to sing to me. Words can’t describe how simultaneously heart warming and embarrassing it is to have about 100 people sing Happy Birthday to you in small groups. I felt so loved.
Later on, my group of 10th formers came back and gave me a whole cake. I had no idea what to do with it. I would have shared it on the spot, but I had to go to a lesson immediately. After their visit, my school’s director came to wish me the best. Ukrainian tradition is to wish people the best on their birthday. The wishes range from happiness and dreams coming true to having a lot of money or professional success. My director told me that I was like a granddaughter to him (reminding me of his eligible grandson in Kyiv in the process). Then he wished that I find a boyfriend, get married and have five children. I don’t know why I should specifically have five children, but a wish like that is very kind for a woman in her early (mid) twenties.
Tania and Olia show off their decorating skills
The biggest surprise of the day came from my 8th form. Before their lesson, another teacher came up to me and asked if I could wait upstairs for a little while because the students were getting ready for a surprise. When I went downstairs, I was shocked. My students bought a cake and juice, decorated the classroom with balloons and signs they had painted and made an entire party. We ate cake and played games for the whole lesson. It was the perfect end to a great school day.
My birthday didn’t end there though. I walked home with my cake, posters, roses and balloons feeling a bit like a fool. I made it home and my phone started ringing. Everyone I know here seemed to remember my birthday and wish me the best. I made myself a nice dinner and relaxed with a glass of champagne and a movie.
Posted on February 4, 2011
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