by Sydney Hollingsworth

COVID-19 has put most of our daily lives on hold indefinitely, but there is one thing that the coronavirus cannot postpone: birthdays. They happen every day. You can’t stop them. But can you be forced to mope when it’s your big day and you can’t have a party? The answer, proven by the actions taken by the world today, is no.

People are discovering all sorts of unique ways to celebrate birthdays. Through video calls on Zoom, people are singing “Happy Birthday” to their friends while they watch as candles are blown out on individual cakes. Drive-by honking sessions are becoming increasingly popular as a way to let the whole neighborhood know there’s a birthday on their block. My friends and I even drove around in separate cars through Kable’s Mill for twenty minutes blasting music with the birthday girl at the end of the caravan, peeking through the sunroof to celebrate her eighteenth birthday.

The point is, even though so much has been taken from us by this virus, that doesn’t mean we can’t maximize the little things in life to brighten these difficult days. The creativity that is being squeezed out of humanity demonstrates our ability to overcome whatever is thrown at us.