Whenever I tell anyone that I was born on Christmas, the common responses are as followed:
“What a great Christmas present for your parents.”
“Do you get a two-in-one present?”
“You’re basically Santa Claus.”
It’s crazy that it generates such an extreme reaction out of people, although I do understand. It’s weird and unique and I mean, it’s been my go-to fun fact about me for the past 21 years of my life, so I get the interest. However, as I’m sure you can assume, it comes with its pros and cons. For one, I can spit off other cool facts like: “Yeah my parents were going to name me Nicolas if I was a boy” or “I came home from the hospital in a massive red stocking that I still use today!” I always get to spend my birthday with family, which is super nice. I love the holidays as is, so the fact that my birthday is associated with all my happy holiday memories makes it very special. I love that it’s not all about me, and others are able to experience happiness and warmth in their lives during my birthday! Plus, I’m 100% guaranteed the most epic birthday dinner ever.
When I was a kid, sometimes I wouldn’t like it because I wanted a designated day for myself to celebrate ME. A little greedy, I know, but I’d compare myself to all the kids in my classes and think, “they get a whole day for themselves PLUS Christmas, how’s that fair?” I don’t see it like this anymore because I truly love that I get to share my birthday with such an amazing day like Christmas. Although it still does come with some cons, the biggest one for me is not being able to spend time with my friends. Christmas Day is often spent with family, so going out for dinner then to the bar with my closest friends is not on my list for that day. However, since it’s around a time where almost everyone has a good chunk of time off, I’m able to celebrate it on another day with them. It’s a little unfortunate that it’s not on the actual day of my birthday, but honestly, I could care less because at least it’s an excuse to get all my friends together again. Although, it can be hard to get everyone together during this time, as it’s the holidays and for some families, this means multiple days of spending time together. However, it’s almost always worked out in my favour especially because my mom is my personal Christmas elf who tries to make my birthday as special as can be. Every year she goes above and beyond to make sure I feel special on my birthday, including surprising me on multiple occasions with parties, presents and events. If anything, it seems like she was the one born on Christmas with how giving and sweet she is.
All in all, I love being a Christmas baby and I love the common responses I receive. Speaking of which, you may be slightly curious as to what my answers to the common responses are, so allow me to close off this article with some conclusions…
1. Yes, my parents were surprised when they woke up Christmas morning with a raging Maya wanting to be a special Christmas present for them.
2. I receive gifts for Christmas and separate ones for my birthday.
3. I’m not Santa Claus, but I’ve been offered a position as one of his elves.
I hope you have a very happy holiday season!