The land of Birthdays was simply beautiful. To begin with, there was always birthday weather there - brilliant sunshine, blue sky, and a nice little breeze. The trees were always green, and there were always daisies and buttercups growing in the fields.
from Enid Blyton's "The Enchanted Wood"
LITTLE LAMB, WHO MADE THEE?
Little lamb, who made thee?
Dost thou know who made theee?
Gave thee life, and bid thee feed,
By the stream and over mead?
Gave thee clothing of delight,
Softest clothing, woolly, bright?
Gave thee such a tender voice,
Making all the vales rejoice?
Little lamb, who made thee?
Dost thou know who made thee?
Little lamb, I'll tell thee,
Little lamb, I'll tell thee:
He is called by thy name,
For he calls himself a lamb.
He is meek, and he is mild,
He became a little child.
I a child, and thou a lamb
We are called by his name.
Little lamb, God bless thee!
Little lamb, God bless thee!
- William Blake
THE ECHOING GREEN
...The skylark and thrush
The birds of the bush,
Sing louder around,
To the bells' cheerful sound,
While our sports shall be seen
On the Echoing Green.
...Till the little ones, weary,
No more can be merry;
The sun does descend,
And our sports have an end.
Round the laps of their mothers
Many sisters and brothers
Like birds in their nest,
Are ready for rest,
And sport no more seen
On the darkening Green.
- From The Echoing Green by William Blake
Presently, to be "in one's birthday suit" is to be naked as the day you were born! But, traditionally it was in fact a splendid suit of clothes that courtiers would wear on their sovereign's birthday.
An interesting fact is that a Golden Birthday occurs when your age matches the day you were born on. You only celebrate your Golden Birthday once and it occurs before you reach the age of thirty-one!
