A Christmas birthday--a blessing?

Yes, today is my birthday. I turned 51 years old at 12:51 PM this afternoon. I have time to post tonight as we always get chores off around here on our birthday. I was pondering what to write about when the old nagging ache showed up again. Do you have any idea what it is like to be born on Christmas day (or even near it as others have confirmed)?
For as long as I can remember, people have made a big deal out of my being born on Christmas Day, but not the kind of big deal you may be thinking of. Starting on day 1, when old Doc Mac had to miss his Christmas lunch because of me, I got the impression that I was a nuisance for picking that time to be born. Could I really help it?
I can recall the many times that it was too much of a bother to make a birthday cake for me because, after all, there were 2 dozen types of Christmas cookies and why wasn't that enough sweets?
I can recall my grandparents giving me this wonderful, brand-new radio for my 13th birthday/Christmas gift combined. I felt so grown-up to have my own radio and, after all, I didn't know the value of things very well. However, when my brother got the very same radio in July, plus his Christmas gift in December, I started to wonder if maybe I hadn't gotten jipped just a little. That was the first time I had ever pondered my worth and the "Joy"of being a "Christmas baby."
Then take my name. How many times did I hear my mom say, "People thought that I should name my Christmas baby "Carol" or "Holly" or "Joy" or "Noel," but I just wanted a "Dawn." Did she really? Why did she say that a million times if she was really happy with the name that she had given me? I happen to like the name "Holly" very much. I'm wondering if I would have liked the name "Dawn" better if I had been born at some other time of the year?
Then too, I recall my aunts coming to our house for Christmas dinner and my mom pointing out to them that it was "Dawn's birthday." How I didn't cringe before the words were out of their mouths. "Oh Dawn, I'm so sorry, but with all of the hussle and bussle of Christmas I clear forgot all about your birthday." Every year it was the same thing. How I learned to hate my birthday as it was an annual reminder that I wasn't worth remembering to make special. I never would have expected a gift or anything from my relatives but, just one time, couldn't SOMEONE have come through the door with a "Happy birthday Dawn" on their lips? After all, they'd known me all of my life--it shouldn't be that hard to remember.
As I aged, I started to get a kick out of people's reactions to my birthdate. You have to give everyone your birthdate if you write a check in the city. Invariably the clerk will smile as she writes down 12/25 and then the year. Hundreds of times clerks have commented, "A Christmas baby." GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR--I'M NOT A BABY ANY MORE AND IT DIDN'T DO ME A BIT OF GOOD WHEN I WAS ONE!!!!!!!
One time I didn't mind it though. The children and I were on our way to a wedding in SD, and I was late. Oh for Pete's sake--here comes the highway patrol.
"You're going a bit too fast Maam," he said gruffly.
He took my license; ran his check; and then came back smiling back to the car.
"Well Maam, I see that you have the same problem that my son has."
"What's that?" I asked puzzled, hoping that he'd hurry up.
"You're born on Christmas day."
"OH YEAH," I groaned, "What fun."
"He doesn't like it either. Well, keep it under the speed limit from now on. This is just a warning."
I smiled; took my wallet; watched him walk back to his car; took off; and said a prayer for his poor son. At least HE had an understanding Dad.
In the past few years, a new awakening has come over me, though, and this is what I'd like to share with you. After we moved here to this farm, one of the neighbors found out that I was born on Christmas day. She made a big deal out of it. "YOU'RE BORN ON THE VERY SAME DAY AS THE LORD WAS!!! IT'S A SIGN THAT YOU ARE A VERY SPECIAL PERSON, DAWN!!!"
Oh bother. If I'm such a special person, then why didn't any of my family or relatives (Uncle David excluded) know about it all of my growing up years?
But she planted a new seed in my mind, about my birthday, and it's been growing. After all, the birthdays in these later years have been very pleasant. Also, Robert proposed to me on my 22nd birthday--December 25, 1979. So it can't be ALL bad, right?
Well, I thought that I'd tell you about what happened today that has made my lean more towards the Christmas birthday=blessing side rather than Christmas birthday=curse side of thinking.
This is what happened. There is this movie that I have been trying to find for a long time now. We saw it years ago and I've never been able to get it out of my mind. I thought I'd like the children to see it but, last year when we found it on Ebay it was over $30. Well, today my daughter, Cora, gave it to me for my birthday and I just gasped. "You didn't spend $30 for this I hope."
She smiled and said, "No, I waited until summer and it wasn't much at all." What a great shopper she is!!!
So we just finished watching it and it was as fantastic as I remembered and I share the name of it with you with my highest recommendation although small children probably would be frightened by it. It's called MIRACLE IN THE WILDERNESS. It's an incredable story about how the story of Christ's birth saved our hero and his wife from a dreadful future.
Well as I watched it, I heard the story with a new light as it was told in the setting of the Native American culture. All of a sudden I realized, with a deeper meaning, the absolute miracle it was that GOD CAME DOWN TO EARTH AS A BABY. Watching the Native Americans reaction to the story the first time that they heard it made it fresh and exciting to me. Suddenly I realized how precious the birth of Christ REALLY IS.
The most wonderful part of the story is how the love of this Christian woman for her husband changed his life, not to mention the love of God touching the cheif's heart in a powerful way. WOW!!!!!!!!!!!
Guess what? Tonight, for the first time that I can remember, I am NOT ANGRY that I am born on Christmas day. PRAISE THE LORD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just maybe, Ann was right and it really is an honor to be born on the day that the world acknowledges Christ's birth. Just maybe........
I share a special song too as I think of all of this. It's called AND CAN IT BE. I suggest that you get out a hymnal and read the words as you think of Christ's coming to earth. Why would He leave Heaven to come down here with us? Why indeed? So, I guess if He wanted me to born on Christmas Day, maybe it's time for me to get over my bad attitude about it and just be happy that I'm here at all.
Still if you do happen to know somebody who is born on Christmas day, maybe you can try going out of your way to make them feel extra special on their birthday. Why? because they're really more special than anyone else? No, but just maybe they have had a lifetime of disappoitments on their birthday like I did and just maybe they could use a little extra pampering to help them to realize how special they really are.