Birthdays mark the time when the body, mind and spirit came into the world. Some people moan about another birthday. Others celebrate with parties. Everyday can be a birthday, a day to learn something new and grow. An aboriginal way of celebrating birthdays as reported by Marlo Morgan, Author of Mutant Message Down Under,  reveals that the one who has a birthday will announce to the tribe that they have grown and transformed and so they can welcome a celebration that becomes a mark for their progress and movement into a more vast and mature way of living. Some people will go for years without celebrating a birthday.

Today is my birthday and I’m imagining what the criteria should be to decide if I should celebrate. Here’s a brainstormed list:

1)    Am I happier and more content now than this time last year?

2)    Do I continue to grow, shed old habits that no longer serve and discover new things about myself?

3)    Do I face adversity and move through it with grace and a certain surety?

4)    Do I live in tune with my intuitive insights and follow my heart?

5)    Do I continue to make new friends and expand my circle?

6)    Do I welcome new challenges and embrace them?

7)    Do I continue to grow and learn professionally as well as in my relationships?

8)    Am I willing to look at my shadow side and face my fears?

9)    Am I moving forward or stagnating?

Last year was one that tried me and forced me to clear away obstacles and hindrances so that I might continue to grow. I left behind a situation of apparent security for one that appears less “secure” financially and professionally, but it has shown me the nature of courage and inner strength. So this year, I will definitely be celebrating a full and good year that was well completed and move into 2012 with gusto.

Blessings and best wishes to you that you may do the same.

Bio: Debra Moffitt is author of Awake in the World: 108 Practices to Live a Divinely Inspired Life. A visionary, dreamer and teacher, she’s devoted to nurturing the spiritual in everyday life. She leads workshops on spiritual practices at the Sophia Institute and other venues in the U.S. and Europe. Her mind/body/spirit articles, essays and stories appear in publications around the globe and were broadcast by BBC World Services Radio. She has spent over fifteen years practicing meditation, working with dreams and doing spiritual practices. Visit her online at http://www.awakeintheworld.com.