Someone Sent Me a Surprise Birthday Card — Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents

What? For me?

We all know that blog about my birthday all of the time, usually morose reflections on the birthday that could should would disappoint.

At the end of the day, I’m a neglected kid with abandonment issues who still doubts the wisdom of her actual birth.

Consequently, I am a wonderland for birthday anxiety. In fact, what I wouldn’t give for 18 years of memories with low key family dinners, a Betty Crocker cake, and a simple reasonable gift. Ritual, reliability, remembrance.

Fast forward to today. My birthday is a Tuesday so I’ll likely order a wee cake, ask a neighbor to drive me to pick it up, maybe go to trivia night, maybe watch ‘When Harry Met Sally’ and eat cake in bed.

Then I got this card in the mail.

I redacted some information. But it’s seasonal and festive. There are cat stickers on the reverse side. It is everything you could want in a late-October birthday card.

I know who sent it, but I don’t know, know them. This means someone really does care that I was born, someone who doesn’t even know me. Who doesn’t assess my value as an activist, blogger, social worker, cat folx or any of the other things I do to feel valuable.