another candle on the cake

tomorrow i turn 21. *deep breath*
while on one hand it feels like a big thing, on the other it feels like just another ordinary day. however one in which i gain a whole new set of responsibilities.
remember when we were 10? and birthdays were all about what you got in those colorful packages? when the best present determined who your best friend was to be on that day and if you weren't the center of attention at all times it was heartache.
now it seems they're all about friends and just spending time with the people you love the most. this is the first birthday that i'm spending away from my family. its strange. even on my 16th birthday- which i spent flying to south africa by myself- my daddy took me to the airport and we had a birthday goodbye. this is unfamiliar to me. but i suppose this is what growing up is...

another candle on the cake
another tally mark to make
another chance to learn to dance
from all of my mistakes

one more year around the sun
one more year of too much fun
one more year that i am here
this new race has just begun

it seems that time has gone so fast
it seems that youth has all but passed
it seems that i forget to breathe
to make the the precious moments last

the time i got my first tattoo
the time i watched her say, 'i do'
the time we spilled wine and our hearts at one time
the time i became best friends with you

let's drink to the times we've yet to share
let's drink to the promise that we'll be there
let's drink to the pictures to bring back these times
that we spend enjoying a friendship so rare

to remember that laughter will always ensue
to remember that truth will see us through
to remember the best and forget all the rest
to all of my favorite moments with you

the future seems far off and often unclear
but mine is in the hands of One i hold Dear
so i know i'm alright, with Him holding me tight
as my twenty-first birthday draws near

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today i am thankful for good friends and for good times with said friends. i am thankful that i have a job, a place to live, a car to drive (that works now- praise the Maker!), and that i have a spectacular life, both behind and before me, and that every day the sun rises over me.
:)

happy birthday, me!