Love

Well this week was my birthday week and my producing partner Holly knocked me for six. She waited up until after she thought I would have gone to bed on the night before my birthday and then set in motion a plan to involve my family and friends all around the world. She asked people to take a photograph of themselves next to the computer screen showing my show Feathers and Toast. Then post the photograph and, in the vein of Amelie with garden gnomes going all around the world and sending back postcards, Tallulah would find herself pinging around internationally by the time I woke up.

I was so moved and in disbelief when I ate breakfast and saw a photograph of my wonderful partner in the Bead Movement, Johanna, smiling in front of her computer screen with Tallulah, feathers scattered over her keyboard, wearing a hat, holding a flute of champagne and with a toast air freshener dangling from her monitor. The next photo I saw was of my dear brother Jamie in Dundee in Scotland and I couldn’t understand what was going on. Then I read Holly’s blog calling people into action and sobbed as I read her moving birthday post and desire to propel Tallulah around the world as her present to me.

I created a mood/vision board in January this year to set the tone of what I wanted to bring into the year. I had never done this before and so I listened to a 15 min podcast telling you how to do it. The woman on the podcast said to choose a word that I wanted to have for the theme of the year. I immediately chose brave. The next moment she said don’t choose a word like brave as you are calling in a year in which you will have to be brave. Fair enough I thought so changed it to love. I went on to make a board plastered with slogans and photographs on and around the theme of love.

Both things have happened in abundance. I was right, brave was a word that I was going to hang onto this year. I have had challenges within my family and work that have nearly knocked me for six  but I have risen to it and over it, keeping the word brave close to my heart. And love simultaneously has come into play with amazing support from family and friends during the rough months.

I say all this to say that this birthday was the icing on the cake, the crowning glory of the theme love. I felt so incredibly held in love throughout the whole day. Still can’t believe the thought and effort Holly went to to coordinate the endeavor and my parents in Russia and her mother in Florida messaging her for technical support. Meant so much the lengths people went to. My whole birthday was an embrace, a warm bath full to the brim with love.

Some birthdays seem to come and go a little more and others really fly out at you in neon and this was the neon-est of the neon. Family phone calls began at 8am, a long lost friend called at lunch, such thoughtful presents and cards that couldn’t be more appropriate. Dinner with dear wonderful friends who are like family here in LA and culminating in the best chocolate cake in the whole world. Really and truly I spent the day in amazement. The days that followed were punctuated with a steak dinner and sunset with my grandmother, with thoughtful cards and presents.

So there we go. I think my heart knew I was going to have to be brave this year and thats OK, not all years will be buttercups and champagne, but I created a vision of love to support my braveness and that is exactly what has happened. I’m so incredibly grateful and here is the result of the international birthday Tallulah Plan.

Tallulah Birthday collage

Tags: , , , , , , ,

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *