If you've been feeling somewhat depressed and struggled to see the good surrounding you, a birthday in lockdown might do it

It's my birthday. At this time of the year, I always go through a set of certain phases: I look forward to it when it's still a bit further away. I then panic about what I can organise to do to make my friends happy when we celebrate together. Closer to the time, I usually resign to not having organised something special enough. Yet somehow, it always turns out to be a wonderful and memorable day.

As with so much in life, this year it is all the same, yet different. During the course of my pre-celebratory emotional roller-coaster ride, I have gone from feeling as though there wouldn't be anything special about it this year, to the opposite: Taking a long look at just how fortunate I am.

I shall not recount every single thing in life I am grateful right here, but suffice to say that across my personal life, my physical and mental health, and my career, there is a lot that I usually take for granted. These things have become normal which is why usually I don't perceive them as special. Because I - lucky bastard I am - experience them every day.

This can be hard to see sometimes. Especially when we have suffered recent setbacks, it can be hard to get our proverbial heads out of our behinds and see the big picture. The latter being that if you are reading this on a laptop or computer it may be safe to assume that you're in one of the luckiest brackets of all humanity. Even if not everything has been smooth sailing across the three pillars of personal relations, health, and work - and in some years it is certain not to be - there will still be a lot to be grateful for.

So no, today there may not be anything grand out of the ordinary, but there'll still be plenty of *special* stuff. If you're curious: I've taken the day off. I am sipping my coffee on the sofa right now while my other half is sleeping in. We'll go for a walk later and buy ingredients for a cake which we may bake together. At some point, there will be calls with my family and a few gifts. I already found an actual card in the mail. It's from my mom. I will enjoy every second of it and hope that I will be this lucky again next year around.