So now I am older. The days have become precious in their passing and I am reflective. I think of my family and friends, now long gone from my life and miss them. I miss what was, the child I was, the adults they were, the family we were. I have gathered memories and hold them close within to the deepest parts of my soul. They can not be shared with people now. They are long dark and gone and I remain aching for the company I never thought I would miss. Birthdays are a time for pause. A time for waking in the small hours of the morning, and letting the heart wind like ribbons through the doors and windows of the soul, reaching for what was and what could be again - all new.