29 | surprise!!!!

i am generally pretty low key about my birthday. (well, maybe except for my sweet 16th when i had fliers made, a dj, and a bunch of people - many whom i barely knew - at my house for a full on dance party. but that was another life ago.) this year, i had planned on going to work, having a quiet dinner with heather, and going to rehearsal. easy peasy. 

in fact, i woke up feeling kinda sick and wondered if i should work from home that day. but my manager, richard, had put a hold on my calendar from 10-2pm to have a generative conversation about ux/ui design for a website. i was really looking forward to that meeting, so got myself together and showed up. 

10am rolls around and i don't know where richard is. i head over to the zamzee office and receive a spontaneous happy birthday song, and find out that richard's not there. in fact, lance (who was also supposed to be part of this meeting) says, "i don't have that on my calendar, and neither does richard." my face contorts. i'm confused. 

i head back to hopelab, and richard rolls over to my cube and asks me to hold put until 11 when he'd be done with his meeting. "well, chris and i were going to get tea...is it okay that i come back by 11?" richard's face stalls and he hesitantly says, "uh yeah, i think that'd be fine." i'm confused.

i go to chris' office to say that i only have about 30 minutes to grab some tea, but ask if he'd still like to. he doesn't really respond. hahahaha. he wishes me happy birthday and hands me a gift. i open it and LOVE it. the gift is so him -- oozing thoughtfulness and creativity!  anyway, while i'm sitting there, heather shows up holding up a large sign that says, "are you thankful for lizzy? of course you are!" (that has georgia mae's beautiful artwork all over it!) while shouting those words and blowing a birthday horn. oh! and pulling a garden wagon with a tree in it!!

shock. 

continued shock...

anyway, my friends/colleagues were encouraged to write something they're thankful for about me on clear ornaments with a white sharpie, and then to hang it on my new tree! (which, i might add is a very resilient tree - a characteristic that heather heeded to mention several times, perhaps subconsciously since i managed to kill a japanese maple earlier this year.) eep. :\

after all of the office shenanigans, heather whisked me away to get a pedicure and to eat lunch. we walked around downtown redwood city with happy birthday crowns on our heads, while a small yellow cloud of balloons followed every step. hehe, we also brought joy to people who cared to stare. :-) 

the day was sheer delight! every part of my birthday was perfect - spontaneous, unexpected, meaningful, fun!, & quite peaceful. the gift of being surrounded by people i love and who love me, is better than anything i could've hope for.

i am so grateful for this amazing life i've been given. truly, i have been experiencing a transcendent joy, bringing me right into the heart of Love. 

thank you everyone. 

in particular, thank you richard for using your boss rights to place a fake 4-hour meeting in my calendar & thinking quickly on your feet! ;-) and thank you heather for knowing me so well, for loving me so well. i can't imagine my life without your friendship.