My Goddaughter recently celebrated a birthday.  When she was little, birthdays were a big thing for her Parents and me.  Her first birthday was a memorable one with all of our family present to celebrate.  My cousins and I didn’t spare a thing in preparation for the party – it was complete with streamers, balloons, baby’s birthday crown, the barbecue in the back yard and the cake that she happily put her hand print on.  I especially remember her tears of fright when we all sang (shouted) “Happy Birthday” to her (now that I think about it, it’s amazing that the “Happy Birthday” chorus doesn’t traumatize most babies!).  I don’t know if she missed celebrating her birthday with classmates since her birthday fell during the summer months however, in her case, her birthday was always a special time to gather with the entire family.  There is no time like a birthday to give you pause to reflect, make plans for the future and appreciate the blessings in your life.

When I started my first full-time benefit paying job out of college the bank I worked for made a big to do about birthdays.  I worked in the Retail Banking area and in each branch office I had the opportunity to celebrate birthdays in different ways.  Sunshine clubs were very often the avenue to celebrate (money was donated each pay and a pot of money was maintained for cards and birthday cakes).    Taking time to celebrate monthly birthdays during a late lunch with the team after the branch closed was also common.  Having a birthday cake in the lunchroom that you could sneak a piece of between customers was always a treat.  Since I absolutely LOVE birthday cake, any occasion to celebrate life – and to come together as a team just for a few minutes – was a welcome respite.

Nowadays many work places don’t acknowledge birthdays or work anniversaries in their efforts to be politically correct.  That is unfortunate. Some organizations complain that the celebrations work against productivity measures.  In an era where work/life balance and work integration are becoming key to employee engagement maybe rethinking some of the “old school” ways to bring employees together in an atmosphere where they can validate each other isn’t such a bad idea.  The “cake” (or ice cream social) could be for any number of reasons to include a birthday, work anniversary or in appreciation of your team.  In these uncertain, turbulent times, finding reasons to celebrate and have a light moment can be vital to the morale of employees and the culture of an organization.

There is no longer a baby girl to celebrate since Alyssa wasn’t going to stay a baby for long.  She is an adult and I am sure she had special plans for her special day.  I’m so grateful for every party invitation envelope I licked, for every birthday hat we decorated, for the unique cakes and for every balloon that I blew up in her honor each year.  Each year is its own milestone when you are alive, have a reasonable measure of good health, are loved and appreciated and have the opportunity to get up in the morning to keep improving yourself – and the world around you.

For the companies that continue in the “old school” traditions of workplace celebrations whether they are for birthdays, work anniversaries, retirements or other events – thank you!  Thank you for allowing your employees constructive avenues to value each other and to commemorate the beauty of their life’s journey.

Lesson learned.