This past Saturday was my nineteenth birthday. Not only this, but it was my first birthday without my family or friends to celebrate it. It made my birthday feel unreal, like it wasn't supposed to happen yet because I didn't have the closest people in my life to celebrate it. It felt like it shouldn't be happening because it was to celebrate me. I didn't feel like celebrating a part of my life when I know that my grandma is sick, when I know my boyfriend of two years is now my ex, and when I know that I'm without my family.
However, it was also my opportunity to have a nice time with the few friends I have made at college and my friend from high school was supposed to come and see me. I planned to take a walk around campus before midnight with my friends, to ask everyone to meet and play a board game or two, to go to a restaurant twenty minutes away to eat together, and to enjoy a cake. I didn't get to do anything I had in mind though and I didn't get to see the people that I had wished to see. Despite these things, I still had a lovely birthday and the people around me really helped make it special.
My roommate had given me a cookie with frosting in between it the week before my birthday so she wouldn't forget or eat it herself. It was touching and I'm glad to have her. She has shared many of her things with me and even though we don't see each other very often, we're good friends. She even stayed and hung around my work Friday night and we walked back to our dorm together. She truly is amazing and I'm glad she was here this weekend instead of in Columbus. I don't think I actually told her how much it meant to me that she was here for me.
The residential assistants and residential director for my dorm's hall all wished me a happy birthday too. They all signed a card and put it on my door. I don't tell many people about my birthday, unless I want them to celebrate it with me, and so the card was a pleasant surprise. I didn't think any of the RA's knew about my birthday. I don't think they know how much just signing their name meant to me. Just a simple recognition of my existence put a smile on my face. I'm so glad that they took the time out of their day to sign a card.
The people who impacted my birthday the most would be all my coworkers at Wow Cafe. The days leading up to my birthday I was exploding with excitement, I told each one of them every day about my birthday. They probably grew sick of it but they're just too nice to tell me otherwise. My usual supervising manager actually put it in her phone though and made sure to remember it. I had to work all weekend for my birthday which stopped me from seeing my friends, but I didn't mind. I love working at Wow and I love my coworkers and I always make it a point to tell them how much I appreciate them every day I work.
They showed me how much they appreciate me though.
On Friday, I went into work like usual, a big smile on my face. I greeted everyone and they all remembered at midnight would be the start of my birthday. The supervising manager that night promised to sign for me right at midnight as well. We went through the evening and night pretty slowly, with a few rushes in between. I completely forgot about bothering everyone at midnight but they didn't forget. We closed the doors and everyone stopped cleaning. They all shouted "Happy Birthday Kara" and then the manager sang me a song. He ended up singing it solo despite trying to get others to join in. I loved every second of it. I thanked everyone and clocked out a half hour later.
On Saturday, I went to work once more and it was another slow day. They all wished me a happy birthday again as well. My coworker brought me a cup of tea and taught me how to clean the grill as my birthday present. I'm so thankful for her and everyone else that worked Friday and Saturday. They really made those two days special and I wanted to stay stuck in that moment. But then, Sunday came.
On Sunday, I got the biggest surprise from everyone at work. My usual supervising manager was back to work on Sunday, along with a different set of coworkers. I was excited to be with them. Sunday is one of the busiest days so everyone was stressed for the rushes to come. I was prepping some chicken tenders for before we opened when my manager's manager called us all into the back. He is a very tall man and very nice, he greets me with a smile and earlier he wished me a happy birthday. I didn't think anything of it until he grabbed my attention and in unison, everyone in the room said "Happy Birthday Kara" and the tall man showed me a cake. I smiled so big and tears sprang to my eyes. I had no idea that these amazing people would do this for me, I had no idea my manager's would take their time and their money to buy me a cake. I penguin hugged everyone and expressed my happiness. I was also gifted a nice vest by my usual supervising manager, she truly is such a sweet lady.
My first birthday along was one I will never forget. Yes, I was without my family and without my friends but I was loved. My coworkers showed how much the love and appreciate me in such a small way but I don't think they know how much they impacted my life. I'm the girl who goes unnoticed unless I do something extremely nice or extremely bad. I love each and every person I work with. I just want to dedicate this article to them and I hope someone reads this to know how much I appreciate them. I don't just say it to say it, I mean each and every word. Thank you guys.
