Anyone who knows me knows I really am not big into birthday celebrations, especially my own. I have a theory about birthdays that I may or may not have already shared, but I will today:

• When your born it’s a big deal because you are not not only a consumer of oxygen but officially a tax deduction
• When you turn 1 years old it’s a big deal because the chances of you not surviving from SIDS reduces dramatically
• When you turn 7 years old it’s a big deal because 7 is a luck number
• When you turn 10 years old it’s a big deal because you are finally a decade old and into double digits
• When you turn 13 years old it’s a big deal because you are officially a teenager and therefore, by default, rotten
• When you turn 16 years old it’s a big deal because your parents make it a big deal and everyone expects you to suddenly go from rotten to sweet
• When you turn 18 years old it’s a big deal because you’re now allowed to vote and can be drafted to die for your country, even though you can’t drink
• When you turn 20 years old you’re no longer a teenager and therefore you are suddenly mature
• When you turn 21 years old it’s a big deal because you’re now able to drink and demonstrate just how immature you can really be

After that, there are two milestones left…

• When you turn 25 years old it’s a big deal because you finally come out of the assigned risk category for car insurance
• When you turn 65 years old it’s a big deal because you can now finally collect Social Security… at least for now

Today I observe one of those milestones on his behalf because a milestone is still a milestone… and today he’d be 10.

Happy birthday buddy.

We all miss you.

We all love you.