12.22.23 // 33

33.
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Today is my 33rd birthday.
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I HATED having my birthday on December 22nd for much of my life.
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It is the second shortest day of the year and up until the last couple of years, I couldn’t stand that. I am and always have been someone who loves the feel of sunshine on my skin, and the way the long days of the summer bring sun-filled wake-up calls, give way to big adventures, and exit with the sounds of cricket crescendos in the late evening hours.
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But, there is something beautiful about my birthday that I’ve learned to love and appreciate.
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December 22nd is the first day the light comes back... It is the first day we move towards brighter days. It is the first light in the darkness, it is the turn towards ever-increasing hope.  
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I used to lust over summer birthdays. Meanwhile, I was stuck in December competing with Jesus on the second shortest day of the year.
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But now I get to celebrate my birthday with the return of the light, the darkest days behind, and the brightest to come.
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And for that, I’m damn grateful.
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Here’s to the return of the light.