Rain

The least the soil you protect could do for you

Is shed its tears

If the blood you shed washes away

Let the universe still know

You were here

If we ever forget you,

At least let the water bless the ground

Where finally, you peacefully

Rest. 

image from GOOGLE

Meg's favourite: Poets on Instagram

This year I have resolved to celebrate my narcissism because let's face it I am awesome. Everything about me is phenomenal from my teeth in need of braces, again, to my size 45 feet to pretty much everything in between. I drip awesomeness. Really I do. And my taste is pretty awesome too. It has to be considering how awesome my mind is.
Well not really. I have lied. I will stop lying. And pardon my sarcastic narcissistic rant earlier, I was having a moment.

*Insert awkward silence here*

Anyway,  I am certainly not a connoisseur of fine food and I rarely let friends go through my music because I have one of those 'don't judge me' type of playlists.
And yeah I basically have very few interests besides poetry, books and chilling with my Cat.
But I like some things which are pretty awesome and I thought I'd add a new section to this blog so every Wednesday expect a 'Meg's favourite' post. Perhaps that may encourage me to try new hobbies so expect to see items such as Meg's favourite: Places in Nairobi to go knitting or Meg's favourite: Shops to get unique jigsaw puzzles from. :) Again just kidding, I will not allow this blog to bore you that much. Although if you are in search of new things to try visit this page for a list of 100 totally cheap hobbies you can start.


So back to today's list.

Now we all know I love poetry, after all I am THE AMATEUR POET. And of course I love Instagram. I mean what else are we meant to do when we are "catching up" with friends besides sit across the table from them and stare at our gigantic smart phones right? LOL.

So sometime last year I discovered how to make my Instagram Home Page more colourful thanks to amazing poets and writers who grace the internet with snippets of their amazing artistry. Therefore below is a list of some of my favorite accounts which I also think you should follow if you want to be blown away when idly scrolling through your page. Enjoy.

Abigail Arunga.

Now I first heard of her sometime last year when she did this interview to promote her anthology Akello. She is a poet, writer and lifestyle blogger and the best part she is KENYAN, just like me. So back to the issue of why I like her page, besides the pictures of cocktails she posts which will have you feeling all thirsty on a Thursday, are the amazing little pieces she posts. Plus she is so cool she also posts her work on her blog (check it out here) And she posts regularly!!

Tapiwa Mugabe.

Tapiwa's poetry is just life!! Well most African Poets are just life, but there is something so magical about the way he weaves his words so of course he had to be on this list. Why should you follow his page?Well I think the power in the screenshot below says a hell of a lot more. Although I certainly wish he would post more often.

Rupi Kaur.

Who is she? She did a whole exhibition based on Menstruation. And caused major  headlines when Instagram took down one of her pictures yet they constantly allow people to post twerk videos and nudes. But most importantly she talked about the taboo M word. And she showed us what exactly the M word is all about, see here. But I came across her poetry much later and I love it. However, she is also another Instagrammer who takes a while before she posts. But  I certainly believe with her, it is so worth the wait.

Ijeoma Umebinyuo

She is Nigerian. And she is really cool. Her Instagram page is not always just about her poetry, she uses it to post about everything else which is cool in her world. And this includes anything from harsh tweets about her home country, Nigeria to screenshots of what is she is currently listening to.

Yrsa Daley Ward.

Well, ever since around August last year, she is and always will be Bae. I mean look at her she is beautiful like eehmagaaawd, she wears her melanin so nicely. And those cheek bones!!! *white girl voice* Like I just.can't. even!!!

This pic is from her lovely Tumblr page.

Aaanyway, her writing is so awesome. I think at every single point there is a line from her anthology- Bone- running through my mind, perfectly describing how I feel. And another reason her page is awesome? She posts regularly. And she can even ambush your time-line with like 5 excerpts from her work at once. And she is also kind enough to even use this platform to tell us of any really cool offers Amazon has on her book making it easier for you to download her book. Yaay :)

Nayyirah Waheed.

Her poetic style is unique, she keeps her poems short but her choice of words is very thought-provoking. Like Yrsa, her Instagram page is very active and a lot of what she posts appears in her anthologies too.

The Poetry Bandit.

What I love about the Poetry Bandit's style is how his posts use this uber cool type-writer template. He gets deep. Very deep. Sometimes taking you to some very dark places with his writing. And I love that. I particularly encourage you to go through his page when love has you feeling all fucked  up. I guarrantee you will feel so much better when you are done. :)

So that's my list. Know anyone else I should be following, drop me a comment. I would love to check them out.

Thank you for reading.

The Reflection Edition: 4/4

So for the final post in the series I was a bit unsure what to write about. In her blog, Tabitha only gave 3 sets of questions so I'm not sure where to take this. But it would be wrong to reflect without giving thanks.

Gratitude is important, everything that happens, happens because it was meant to. I believe in timing and sometimes life has this way of making sure her timing is always right. So give thanks: for the happy times, for the bad times, for everything in between.
Do you pray? Thank God for letting you see this year. If you count your blessings you will realise that life is where it all starts.

So here is my list of 22 things I am thankful for, randomly listed because choosing a number one would be way too hard:

1. My mother.
Because she is the only one I got. My cheerleader, provider, confidant and basically everything.
2. My brother.
We may have two very conflicting personalities. I probably will never fully get him and him me, but he is blood. And I am glad he is around.
3. My special friend (whose name I shall change to Mufasa lol).
He is pretty much one of the very few people whose opinion on my writing MATTERS heavily. I value the input he has added to my work and lately his friendship. I am also thankful for the random times I'd be having a bad day and a text from him, who was initially an acquantaince, would come through telling me how he thinks my work is pretty amaze-balls. People like him keep my flame burning because my desire in life is to be able to touch someone with my words. So thank you for being a pretty amazing human Mufasa :-D:-D
4. All the people who read my work.
I am thankful for everyone who dropped by my posts both here, on my other home Messed Up Too and even on the Story Moja Festival blog. I value feedback. And nothing put a smile on my face more than an email showing a new like or comment. Thank you for reading.
5. Friends, old and new.
I made some pretty awesome girlfriends this year. And I am thankful for lunch dates and conversations and basically having people willing to share a little bit of them with me.
6. The Story Moja Festival 2015.
When I applied to be a blogger for the festival I did not know what I was getting into. I just knew I wanted to write and to meet people as equally in love with writing as I am. It proved to be that and so much more, for the first time I found my people and I learnt so much and had such a phenomenal time being a part of that team.
7. My internship.
I talked about it before and even now I still cant believe how blessed I was to work in that company. I gained a new kind confidence as well as valuable career experience and basically it was a great time.
8.The places I have been to.
I haven't travelled that much this year. In fact the only major out of town place I went to was Amboseli. But I am still grateful for all the new places within the city that I dicscovered because they were all really beautiful. I'm a lover of nature, and even things as simple as going to the outskirts of Nairobi made all the difference in terms of helping me clear my head.
9. School.
I know it is easy to take the ability to learn for granted but I am glad that this year I never had to miss a class because of lack of fees. Education is power and I believe no knowledge ever goes to waste so for finishing yet another academic year peacefully, I am super thankful.
10. My blogs.
I started blogging to keep my writing talent alive. But as I kept at it, it became my platform to vent and to just let my mind race freely. What I love are the opportunities it creates: being able to confidently say that 'yes I am a writer', to the conversations it sparks. Blogging is definitely one of my highlights of this year. I am also thankful for my writing-the one thing I was always sure I could do, the one thing that makes me awesome :-)
11. Clothes.
I am not a fashionista but there is something about dressing up that always has a way of instantly uplifting my moods. So I think fashion is something to celebrate because at the end of the day once you look good, you gain a confidence that can help you conquer anything. 
12. Protection.
This is something I do not take for granted. There has been so much insecurity lately, in Kenya and around the world so I am thankful that through it all, me and mine were kept safe and I haven't lost anyone this year.
13. Books that changed my life.
Pen will always be mightier than sword. In my world at least. This year I read so many books and blogs that touched my heart. The biggest winner of course is Steve Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower. I also read the Hunger Games trilogy and the 7 People You Meet in Heaven which I think were some pretty amazing pieces of work.
This is the year I also discovered my favorite mordern age poets-Nayyirah Waheed, Rupi Kaur, Warsan Shire, Tapiwa Mugabe and Yrsa Daley Ward. Their words go straight to my soul and I was blessed to discover that kind of beauty.

14. Great restaurants.
I don't have a particular favourite place but I do have a favourite food so as far as food is concerned this year I'm thankful for FRENCH FRIES because fries=happiness :))

15. Jack my hairdresser and the ladies that do my braids.
As a lady I think it is key to have someone who helps keep your mane tamed. That for me is Jack who is an expert at processing hair and keeping these roots straightened. Also the ladies who have been braiding my hair since I was 7, mad love for them because they are awesome people.❤

16. My extended family.
We may not always see eye to eye but I am glad I have them. Family is everything

17. Home.
Nothing beats coming to your little place at the end of a long day and I do not take that for granted.
I am thankful that I have a place I can call my shelter.

18. Good health.
Surprisingly I haven't been that sick this year, except for a little cough I caught sometime earlier this year.
I certainly do not deserve it but the fact that I have barely seen the corridors of a hospital this year is something amazing.

19. All the lessons I have learnt this year.
I've grown. I can say that for sure. I am a little wiser even in the least of ways. I understand that letting go is a process and that it will hurt. I have learnt that fear is a bad thing and I am learning to stand my ground.
I am not the same person I was when I started this year. And the fact that I have grown is something I can celebrate.

20. Answered prayers.
I guess when time passes it is easy to forget those things that had our hearts in a storm but which somehow got fixed. I believe in praying over every little thing and for every little thing that was fixed because I prayed, well I thank God.

21.The internet.
There is a world of possibility out there. I know it sounds cliche but there is and this wonderful creation called the internet has helped link me to everything. And well that is amazing. From Cat videos, to phenomenal blogs to great music and even outfit inspiration, the internet is definitely one of the reasons I am happy to be alive in this era.

22. Turning 22.
It has been so much. I don't think I could write it all. I am glad I got to live to see my 22nd year. Not everyone made it this far and every day I am learning not to take that for granted.

Well I guess that's it. Possibly my last post of the year.
I thank God for everything.
And I thank Him for 2016, whatever it holds.

Have a blessed 2016 and thank you for dropping by. I would also love to know what you are thankful for :)

Love and light,
Me ❤

The Reflection Edition: 3/4

In between eating, making food and waiting to feel hungry again so I can eat I genuinely have not had time to finish up on this series because, well, Christmas.
Hope yours was beautiful too btw.

But I am back again to finish off what I started...

So

1. Do you have a female icon that you look upto? If so, who would that be and why?
For this particular year I'll pick Tabitha from of course Craving Yellow. An African Woman living in the diaspora, I feel she embodies what the mordern African Woman is all about: educated, stylish, bold and confident in her own skin. Her natural hair is errthaaang!!!! Lord knows the number of times I scroll through her Instagram and want to just go have the Big Chop and start all over again. In the past few months I have also found a lot of light in her self portraiture series posts, particularly this one. Her words are uplifting and I think that's why I'd pick her as my icon this year.

2. What do you do to chill out, say over the weekend or after work/school?
I nap. In fact, I take very long naps. I'm that good in bed.. I can sleep for hours!!

3. What's your greatest value in life? (Patience, Selflessness etc)
Kindness. It's something I respect. It is a virtue I want to build. In a world where it's all about chasing your individual happiness, the ability to give your love, time, self and resources is something I truly value and I hope to cultivate this more as I get older.

4. If you could improve one area of your life, what would it be and why?
I'd improve who I am socially.
I guess I still haven't changed much from the socially awkward teen I was. Which sucks. I feel I could do better at opening up to people and building solid meaningful friendships. And next year I want to work on not being so scared around new people and strengthening the few ties I have.

5. What's your favourite online shop?
The online shopping bug is still yet to hit me. But I would sincerely like to thank my local thrift market, TOI, for keeping me fly on a serious budget this year. Mad love to it❤

The Reflection Edition : 2/4

Okay so now we are live with part 2.

1. Name one person in your life that has made all the difference this year.
Mum. Just because she is every super hero ever invented and soo so much more. My woman. My super woman.

2. What aspect about yourself have you grown to love this year?
My booody. I am perfect. Even with my size 10 feet and barely A cup and tiger stripes on my behind. I love me. Soo so much.

3. What is your absolute favourite movie or series of the year?
Power. Because Omari Hardwick. Enough said.

4. What's been difficult this year? What/Whom have you lost?
Letting go of some pretty strong bonds. It took a lot. Soo many tears and wondering if I did the right thing letting these people go. But sometimes we let go so we move on. And I know that they had to leave for a reason.

5. What are your holy grail beauty products of the year?
Arimis Jelly. Do not judge! But honestly it is the best 85 shs I ever spent. Super mild and super moisturing. I recommend it for smooth hands and feet though some people swear by its Acne healing ability.
Also Matte  Red Lipstick. The bolder the better. I mean you just cannot not have a nice liquid matte lippie to brighten even the dullest of days.

Love,
Me. ❤

The Reflection Edition: 1/4

This blog suffers from one thing: neglect. I guess that can be blamed on the blog for the equally as messed up. But I thought that as I end this year, the least I could do is come back to where it all started and reflect on what chasing dreams felt like in 2015.

It's been a good year. Scratch that. It has been a very good year. And I am thankful for all the epic shit I did, beautiful people I met and unforgettable memories I made. Even for the lows that colored some days dark, I am still thankful for those too.
So to celebrate another year chasing dreams I thought to follow the prompts that Craving Yellow is using in her blog here to talk about everything that this year was and wasn't as I look forward to 2016.
So here goes...
PART 1 OF 4

1. What was your happiest moment this year?
Sooo many. I travelled, made new friends, worked hard, drank (clear liquids lol) and enjoyed every minute. 
I discovered my comfort zone and then the place right outside and the experiences that came with saying 'why not' instead of 'why' filled me with so much life.
Basically this year, those were the moments I enjoyed, those moments I made a concious decision to LIVE.

2. What significant transition have you made this year?
Moving into that unknown zone outside my place of comfort. That statement captures so much because it doesn't just mean doing daring things. It meant walking away from relationships that were more exhausting than uplifting despite that lonely feeling that follows. It meant something as simple as saying hello to strangers because ignoring them was way too easy. It meant taking risks. That wasnt easy but making those changes were some of the best decisions I have made this year.

3. What new food did you discover this year?
Steers Fries. Because they are life. And I frankly dont know what else. I am still yet to perfect some recipes so I cant post about that. But yeah. Fries. Not because they are anything new. But because fries=life :-D

4. What book/author/blogger did you find super informative this year, and why?
This one I'd say my Nayyirah, Warsan and Yrsa. Because their various anthologies: Salt and Nejma, Teaching my Mother to Give Birth and Bone speak to my soul. And they made me fall in love with words again.
And of course Tabitha of Craving Yellow. I am not a Naturalista, still thinking about going that way though but her blog is just amazing and filled with so much love and light it is amazing. ❤❤

5. What new spaces/places did you discover this year?
Amboseli was EPIC. I'd write about it but you know what happens in Vega.. I mean Amboseli stays in Amboseli lol. :D

6. What fear did you overcome this year?
Definitely the fear of trying. I wonder what would have happened if I hadn't tried applying to be a Story Moja Fest blogger. Or if I hadn't tried to go above and beyond to make my internship as fulfilling as it was. I wonder how I would be ending if I hadn't tried hanging out with strangers.
So many beautiful things happened because I said no to that fear.
And that's why I can say this year maybe I did actually do some dream chasing. And I got a little bit closer

So how has 2015 been for you?
Comment, email or even blog about it and tag me or drop a link.
You can use the questions above or add your own.
I just hope as you reflect you may find beauty worth celebrating and more reasons to be thankful for this year.
Love and light,
Me ❤

P.S next post coming up tomorrow :)

Shimba. Lake Nakuru. Mara. Amboseli

The same grey wildebeests with their trendy mohawks
The same zebras wearing their black and white body suits
The same buffalos giving you bitch stares
The same ostriches flaunting their legs for days
The same hyenas lurking around
The same elephants getting their daily mudbaths
The same lions lying lazily like the bosses they are
The same cheetahs that remain ever so hard to spot
The same birds not getting as much attention as the carnivores
The same snake slithering suspiciously into a bush
The same white tourists wearing their binoculars and safari hats
The same bumpy roads winding infinitely in between grass that is fifty shades of green across plains that ceaselessly stretch into hazy hills
The same tour guide telling you when that when you get to that other side you will see more animals
The same burning heat in the same semi-stuffy semi-airconditioned tour van

A new peace that calms the storm each and every single time.

The One about Hershey's Kisses,Mascara, Riley and Energy

The bruising will shatter.

The bruising will shatter into black diamond.

No one will sit beside you in class.

Maybe your life will work.

Most likely it wont at first

but this will give you poetry

from Poetry by Yrsa Daley-Ward.

So here is the thing. I am weird. In fact I am very weird.

I cry at weddings even when I do not know who was getting married. I cry when babies do cute things. That is a recent thing though, I have no idea where that one came from. I cry when I am angry. I cry when something makes me laugh especially when it has been a minute since I actually felt that joy so good you can feel it in all your nerves. I cry when I am stressed. I cry when I am overwhelmed- for this I reference my final year Undergraduate Research Project. Enough said. Also I cry on my period. Now that is the crazy one because at that point anything can have me on full out torrent of tears mode- even chocolate. Chocolate, certain times a month can send me into a full out storm. Can you imagine that?

And well I used to feel that this was something to be ashamed of.  Pre-puberty I thought my sadness was something to be ashamed so I’d cry and feel bad about it and then cry some more because I feel bad. But then puberty happened and the fear about feeling things got worse so I learnt not to cry in public which made me sort of hide it by this glass wall of nothingness. Which isn’t exactly a good thing because that made me very snappy. You can only hide behind glass walls for so long after all.

But then the beauty about growing up is the knowledge of self I have gained over the years.

Post puberty I have become aware of the things that make me cry. And as the days pass I am starting bit by bit not to be ashamed of them. See, I feel things way too much.That is just how I was wired. Also I am a leo. We are the kings of feelings. Literally. I am affected by negative things. I feel the sadness and have this tendency to smell it and live it from miles away even before it lands. I feel anger. I feel envy sometimes and I also feel insecurity a lot of the times. And these make me cry because they are bad energy and the thing about bad energy is that it needs to be let out.

But then I also feel happiness. I get excited about things way before they happen and I am over the moon. And then when happiness finally comes, MY GAAD it is unbelievable. Sometimes I even lack sleep because I am just up basking in the beauty of that joy. And most times I smile. I smile a lot and I get jumpy- some one told me I am like a bunny on steroids because of how I jump all over the place. And I love that feeling when I I get to let the sunshine out. Because positivity is good energy and good energy is uncontainable.

And then sometimes I am just numb. And maybe sometimes the numbness is because of not fully allowing myself to release the bad energy or to bask in the good energy. And that is not okay because these emotions were put inside me so they can be felt. In feeling them is the opportunity to let go and letting go creates that lightness needed to move on with life and continue enjoying it.

I am at this point where I am aware that being an adult sucks. I hate the responsibilities and having to act some way just because it’s the right thing to do. I honestly miss that ability to do whatever the fuck I want just because I am child and whatever! But my favorite part about being an adult is this knowledge of self I keep gaining. As I get older I am aware of how I feel. I may not fully understand why I feel it but I know. And now that I know I am not scared of feeling the way I do. In fact I am learning to be proud of this ability to feel things a little more than everyone else. Lately I have been rocking it. I am a writer and I have realized that part of the reason why this writing thing works for me is that I get to express these very intense feelings. And after taking my writing a bit more seriously this year, I now know that some of my best work comes from that very intense place of writing. So watch this uber-emotional space. That Caine Prize story is just hidden there waiting to be uncovered and I cannot wait to find it.

I am also learning to protect my energy and the people I let near it. Not everyone will understand it or embrace it.  Some people are in your life for a season and others for a reason and there is nothing wrong with letting go of those whose energy seems to conflict with yours. It is not because they are bad people, it’s just because at that time their energy just wasn’t working with yours. I believe time works everything out and if they are truly meant to be in your life then maybe just maybe their energy in its right form will find its way back to yours.

Anyway enough about that. This entire post was inspired by the movie Inside-Out. It is an animation which (and this is no surprise) had me bawling. By the way thank you Maybelline, my mascara actually  stained my pillow case, I should claim a refund because isn’t this shit meant to be waterproof? But I digress. Sorry. See I write a lot about depression and feelings because for me those phenomena are very real. Depression is a fight I know too well and though I know I have won the war, the battles can take their toll. So without divulging too much let me end this by saying that if still you do not understand the concept of some people having days when it takes a little extra effort to get themselves out of bed every morning, well this movie breaks it down in a manner I think even a 10 year old can understand. And also if you are at that point where the Depression Struggle is a little too real, well Baby it is for a season. And this movie will help you understand more and more importantly it may just give you that reassurance to let you finally soak it in and stop fighting it because if you just let the storm pour for just a minute, the sky will clear up and you will be okay. So sweetie watch it too.

Also if I wasted your time making you read the preceding 1000 words because they do not make sense to you at all, well watch it too. I guarantee you will laugh once or twice.

Basically everyone should just watch the damn movie.

Finally I understand a little more about why I cry. And I understand why for there to be happiness, sadness must prevail. I still do not understand why babies doing cute shit makes me cry. Or why a Hershey’s Cookie and Cream Bar makes me cry on my period. But well each day is a learning experience. We will figure it out one sweet day.  Most importantly I am learning that at the end of it all, I will be okay.

"Take this good advice
If they're gonna judge you for life
Say we can't always be fly
We gon' be good long as them sneakers white
You'll be alright
Said you'll be alright
Said you'll be alright
Said you'll be alright"

The White Shoes- Wale

Image from Google Images

Taking Stock in October:)

I shouldn't be writing this. I have an exam in a few hours. I should read. But look where my very low attention span has me ending up? I apologize for my silence. With the past few weeks trying to keep up with my blogging for the Story Moja Festival and posting content on my new baby I just haven't had time for this site. Also school. School is the reason. For me neglecting this blog. For my stress. For headaches. For global warming. For everything negative including bad WiFi lol :D.

But I hope you, my dear readers are well. I miss you guys. And the occasional sweet comments you tend to leave. I promise a post on how the Story Moja Fest went once I can clear up my schedule a bit. Believe me it was everything and a bag of Awesome Ugandans lol. In the meantime here is a little Taking Post because let's face it you have nothing better to read or why else are you here? 

Enjoy.

And have a month filled with beauty, flowers and dreams coming true.

Love and Light.

Me xoxo.

Cooking: (next question please)

Eating: Alpenliebe sweets. Because caramel just makes me melt :))

Drinking: Water. I can finally finish a litre of that h20 easily and I have been doing this daily for almost 2 weeks now. Yaay me:). I notice the difference too. My legs look great. Yes my legs. Because they are very sensitive to positive changes in my diet. So this is me joining the drink more water bandwagon, try it:))

Reading:Salt by Nayirrah Waheed. Best anthology I have come across, except that one she also wrote called Nejma. And of course Bone by this steaming cup of melanin called Yrsa Daley-Ward which is equally awesome. Poetry is where I find the unspoken words of my soul and those poets are just life!!

I downloaded the three from Kindle thanks to some super amazing offer sometime in September. Loove them.

Wishing:That 18th could get here already. I have a trip I am craazy excited about and I wish we could fast-forward to that time and then let that weekend last forever. Also to blog about it or not? Hmmm.

Enjoying: The sunshine

Dear el nino, please take your sweet sweet time getting here.

Waiting: To do an exam at 2 p.m.

Loving: Some sweetheart people I have been hanging with lately. They may be strangers but they are such sweethearts(although they may be too G to admit it). Love you guys :**

Watching: Nothing. But tomorrow the Love and Hiphop addiction continues after my paper. Also I realized I have a thing for trash TV. Like my new program of interest is E!'s WAGS.

Hoping: That my grades this semester will be decent. Because hoping for perfection is a bit of a stretch. Degrees are hard. Think twice before doing them. Seriously.

Listening: To Miguel's album Wildheart. It is everythaaang! Some of the lyrics are kinda twisted, but you can always skip those tracks right? But his is what I like to think of as whiskey music. The kind of music to get you all zoned out while you sip a little something something on the rocks. And his voice is just soo yummy. I am in love. So so much love.

Wearing:Red lipstick. I feel like I may have a lipstick smudge somewhere though. It's one of those days.

Following: Nayirrah Waheed's instagram. Best poetry page I have come across thus far.

Feeling: Nothing. Like this whole waiting for afternoon papers is not my thing.

all my images from Google.

The one about my birthday.

You missed some things.
You may have missed a few school plays when you had to travel out of the country.
You might have missed my first period, but then again that one wasn't your business.
You even missed out on my first time at Whitesands because you were too busy working hard to pay for it.

But one thing you never missed were my birthdays.
You never missed giving me a very cleverly selected card.
You never missed sharing cake and chocolate.
You never missed seeing my face when I turned a year older.

So thank you.
For being there from the first one.
And for the way you struggled to make sure you were around for the last one I had that you would see.

I understand now why it's never a big deal if anyone else forgets it.
Because once Superman has your back, no one else matters.

I hope I have given you a reason to smile from wherever you are the past year.
I wish you were around to smile with me in the coming one.

But I'll take what I can get.
And for now it is the comforting memory that you might have missed some things.
But my birthday was not one of them.