This is What I Should Have Said

I had a wonderful surprise Birthday party thrown for me.  It was thoughtful and I'll admit until almost the very last minute, I had no idea at all.   It was also quite uncomfortable, or at least I was, as I'm not fond of that much attention.  There's irony here in truck-loads, and I'm going to just ignore that for now.

There were some lovely comments by my Dad, my best buddy and my number one son.  And I'll also admit I was quite happy to not speak at that point, searching vainly for words as I was silently doing.

But here's what I think I would have said, having the benefit of a few days to mull it over.

Firstly, I'm flattered and thrilled that everyone made the effort to come over and attend. Notwithstanding how persuasive my wife and daughter can be, and how great the food was, I was really touched to see so many people gathered together that actually all mean an awful to me. Long time friends, new friends, old friends and family. Folks I hadn't seen in a long time and some I get to spend time with frequently.  At times like these it strikes me wealth isn't about stuff, rather it's a measure of the depth of strong relationships we have, and Saturday night I felt extremely rich.

Secondly, my wife is pretty incredible for having engineered all of this.  On one hand it was a predictable occasion to have something done, but even with that knowledge she was low key and I know now to take extra care with her poker-face.  My daughter guarded me all day, and was in hindsight quite chatty.  She engaged me on things she knew I'd bite at, and she was also good at camouflaging true intention.  Another one to watch.

Lastly, I know I veer towards the pointed comments, delivering the smart, cute insightful thing to say when in a pressure situation, and in the moment, it doesn't always work. What I really wanted to say was a simple 'thanks'. The evening made me feel embarrassingly special, and I think that's what was intended.