Birthday Cards

I got a birthday card in the mail yesterday. No, it's not my birthday - that's still 2 weeks away. But some people who send you cards don't bother with the date, just the month. The card is from my dentist.

Each year I get a birthday card from my dentist and my insurance agent. I'm not sure why these people (or their staff) feel the need to send me a card each year. Maybe they are hoping to make my relationship with them appear to be more personal. Maybe they are hoping to just keep their business in my mind when my relationship with them has become rote and predictable. I'm not sure. But I am also not sure I like it.

I like my dentist, I like his staff. The hygenist asks me about my kids and grandkids each time I come in. The dentist asks me about my job - he remembers I teach part-time at the college. I like that, I don't expect it, but I like it. But that's in their office. When I come to them.

I have friends and family who care about my birthday. I don't need the business establishments that I do business with to care about my birthday. It seems silly and a waste of paper. It doesn't brighten my day like a card from family. It just is.

However, with all that said, the dentist birthday card (which as always come weeks before my birthday) has served another purpose. When my kids still lived at home, if I displayed the card once it came in the mail, it served as a reminder to my kids (especially my son) that my birthday was approaching.