Birthdays are that special day for people. They are one of those days that are cherished forever. To celebrate this day in a unique way, birthday gift baskets are an excellent idea. By doing so, you will show how much you appreciate that person.
How to celebrate a birthday? For many years, pagans have celebrated their own fertility and other special days with special foods and feasts. Birthdays are the same way. However, there are some differences between pagans and birthdays – especially when it comes to the food!
The birthday tradition in the ancient world was to give something very expensive to a young woman on her birthday. This was done either as a symbol of love or fertility, or else as a symbol of wealth and honor. Sometimes the gift was an object that would be carried to the house of the birthday girl or boy. Sometimes the birthday girl would be forced to carry it everywhere she went!
From these traditions, the birthday tradition of today has evolved to where now, on a typical birthday, a small cake is placed under the tree and decorated with little cupids, bows, flowers, ribbons, etc. The cake is usually made with a fruitcake. The guests open up the cakes, while the birthday celebrant makes a wish. After the cake has been sliced, the birthday celebrant puts his or her middle finger in the cake and holds it above the cake. The cake is then shared by the guests. This is called the birthday crown.
In America, birthdays are more about celebrating a recent achievement. Thus, a boy will have a bigger cake and will take the cake away once he hits puberty, whereas a girl will have a pink one and will take the cake away when she becomes a teen. It is not uncommon for the father of the groom to take the cake away before the party starts. Traditionally, the cake cutting ceremony marks the end of the birthday celebration.
In some parts of Europe, particularly Germany and Belgium, a birthday cake is burnt on St. Valentine’s Day. On this day, seven candles are lit, representing the seven deadly sins. The candles are lit all around the room and the child must not step foot in the room until after the candles have all burned out. If the child does step into the room, a blindfold is placed over one eye and a loud noise is made. Then the child steps into the room and the punishment begins. The seven deadly sins are punished by burning their houses down to ashes.
In some countries, a special memory cupboard is built in which children to store all their special memories of their birthday. When the parents of the children reach a certain age, they have to draw one from the cupboard and then pass it on to the next birthday guest. This tradition originated in the Middle East where the children would store memories and good luck items such as pieces of jewelry, silver coins, special stones or edible treats in a specially designed memory cupboard.
Although nowadays most of the Western world has moved on to cakes, birthdays are still celebrated with special parties and gifts, cakes and cupcakes. A traditional cake is still used at birthday parties and toppers for cards and photos. The children exchange birthday invitations and send their invites with a birthday cake in the mail to friends and relatives all over the world.
One of the most popular of the simple birthday celebration ideas is to have a bake sale. Instead of buying a cake, decorate your own with food coloring and frosting and then decorate it with bows, ribbons, flowers and balloons. Most bakeries make easy to follow cakes that can be baked as per the individual requirements of the birthday person.
The most common birthday traditions include the birthday cake, the Happy Birthday song, pin the star on the cake, a bottle of champagne and the giving of chocolates. The birthday boy usually gets to sing the happy birthday song first, followed by the cake and then by the champagne. When the champagne is served, the birthday boy takes a special bottle of his favorite drink as a gift. It is a ritual observed in lots of places in the United States of America.
The Happy Birthday song is sung by the happy birthday person and the person who give him the present usually joins him in the act of singing. Traditions and events are always part of human life and there is nothing random about it. While some people like to go about doing their thing in a haphazard way, other people prefer to do things in a planned manner. When we talk of history, it is only interesting if we learn about the various bits of information that were passed down to us by our elders.
