Create Your Own Festival

I’m a December Sagittarius, so the lore is big and people are busy. In college, my birthday was during finals week, so I took to being flexible about when and how I was celebrating and started packing bday candles with me wherever I went and forcing people to sing to me (playfully). I called it The Festival of Tricia and people seemed to find it charming/funny and I was still getting what I wanted out of the whole thing: laughter, celebration, and a wish.

When I got divorced in 2019, I wasn’t sure how my birthday was going to go. So, when I visited my family out of state for Thanksgiving, I ordered an ice cream cake for myself and popped it in the freezer of the Air bnb where I was staying.

The day after Thanksgiving, I made everyone my special leftover sandwiches and then brought out the cake onto which I had Merry Trishmas emblazoned and candles I lit myself. It was a Festival Rebrand. I cut the whole cake into exactly as many pieces as people were there (none of this sliver or bite business) and we ate ice cream cake and drank champagne and I didn’t have to worry about my birthday anymore.

This is how I kickoff my birthday every year now. I cook - usually leftover sandwiches and picky bits, I provide my own cake, I decorate my house with Christ(Trish)mas trees (Tree is my family nickname) and lights and invite too many people over. I rent space heaters for outside and put a fire in the fire pit. It’s chaotic and wonderful, and after an hour (so people can stay or leave as their schedule allows in this busy season) I pull out the cake and candles, make someone light them (usually my awesome kid)- and everyone sings Happy Trishmas to me. I feign surprise and embarrassment and we all laugh and laugh. And then, I don’t have to worry about my birthday anymore.

I think my favorite part is that it’s an evening I honor all the people I love with light and food and celebration under the guise of my ego. Am I at the center of it? Or are they? What a beautiful mystery. This year, my friends who attend will receive their holiday gifts from under the tree. I couldn’t imagine anything better.

Make yourself a holiday filled with light and foods and people you love spilling out from every corner. It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Photo of the first Trishmas cake. Link is to the ice cream cake recipe I used (with mods) to make a cake for a family member this summer - I used graeter’s peach ice cream and vanilla and did a blonde Oreo and salted caramel between the layers.