The magick of birthdays

My high priestess has said the first spell most of us cast is making a wish and blowing out candles on a birthday cake. There is a ritual associated with birthdays: gathering people together, lighting the candles, singing, wishing, blowing out candles, cutting the cake.

I couldn't tell you what I wished for on my first birthday, but it looks like there was a candle and a cake!
 Last week was my 35th birthday. It wasn't a super eventful birthday, but it did remind me of the magick of friendship, and birthdays in general.

I had a few close friends over; as in introvert, small gatherings are best! We sat around and talked and ate (Pagan gatherings always involve food). We didn't play silly games like most of us did as kids (though I may need to bring back that tradition next year), but there was something special about spending time with people I care about and who care about me.

And of course there was cake!

The grown-up version of birthday cake, was the Salty Dog from Decadent Creations. I'm not going to jinx it and tell you what I wished for this year, but the cake was delicious :)

And after the cake there were presents! As far as I know, none of my friends discussed this beforehand, but my birthday seemed to have an unofficial bird theme. There was a sparrow lantern from one friend, an owl figurine from another, an owl offering bowl from someone else, and even a flamingo card from my mom.
The owl has always been one of my main spirit animals, and this was the perfect time to update my personal altar:

The silver pentacle was a gift from another friend, and the malachite owl was a birthday gift from a previous year.

This year I also decided to give goodie bags to my guests. I don't remember the last time I did this, but I remember it was fun to get a small gift for attending parties as a kid. I have also been trying to do some spring cleaning, so it seemed like a good time to find new homes for items I no longer need. I recycled a few paper bags and put a couple of items in each: a pendulum and dream catcher in one, a book about chakras and a box of incense in another. Everyone randomly picked a bag, and it was amazing how well the contents suited each person. I couldn't have planned it better if I tried!

Birthdays are more special when they're shared, and I wanted to share some of my birthday magick with you. May your next birthday be as magickal as mine was!