My birthday is this week, and that has me thinking about presents! It is so much fun to hang out with people who are enjoying their birthday. They seem to glow with the good wishes of those around them, and the sure knowledge that gifts await.

How might the world be different if we treated everyone as if it were their birthday every day? This is not to say that we should spend hours every day on facebook, telling people we haven’t seen in ten years to have a happy day, but rather that we might carry pure, unconditional good will for all those around us.

Likewise, how different might our own world be if we moved through every day sure in the knowledge that great gifts await us? Not just hoping or praying that good things might come our way, but spending our days in absolute certainty that no matter what, something good must be on the way. How might it change our behavior toward others, and how others perceive us?

This year I am giving myself the gift of openness to the good stuff in the world, the true gifts. Wide awake with an open heart I will be certain not to miss them.