The Final Birthday

            Odie woke me from a nap, proclaiming that there was a party in my house.

            My sister had decided to throw a birthday party for me. It was a lovely gesture, but I had been resting so that I would have the energy to attend a conference. A promotion rested on the line.

            It would have been rude to not socialize awhile, and so I decided to make an attempt to sneak in late to the conference on stopping crime.

            Kylie had become much bigger since the last time I saw her.

            She was not the best-behaved little girl.

            I was surprised to find a cake on top of the counter. Blowing out my own birthday candles for the first time in my life nearly took the sting out of aging.

            It could not remove the instant achy joints though.

            I enjoyed a slice of cake with my oldest daughter.

            While looking about the party, I realized that I did not know any of the guests aside from Odie and Kylie. That fact made me feel much better about escaping to my conference.

            And my teenagers were even generous enough to agree to taking care of their sisters for the rest of the evening.

            I returned home late that night to find Aubrey and Gloria sleeping soundly. I was able to fully rest before work the next morning. Feeling great, I grinned the entire walk out to the car, happy to find that not much had changed since I became an elder. I could still follow my passion and hunt after my life’s ambition. Unlike Mother, I would not retire and doom myself to repetitive days and the painful energy resulting from being stir-crazy.

            And after I returned home, I could thoroughly enjoy being a mother. Elderhood held no hindrances for me. I thought of Kyle, and felt proud to know of another who had not let old age derail them.

            “Wow, you’re handling this a lot better than Vienna did,” the witch commented while I worked on a painting. “I pegged you for a breakdown.”

            I had the following day off from work, and decided to age my youngest twins while the teenagers were at school. I looked forward to having them to myself for their first few hours of childhood.

            While attempting to teach the girls how to play dominoes, Mother broke through to my mind. “I didn’t think you’d be so old yet!” Not wishing to look insane, I kept quiet. “I guess I better start working out who to pick.”

            I am quite sure that my face paled dramatically. Until that statement, I had never fully realized that she would have sole authority over who would be burdened with her next.