Childhood Birthday Parties
What do birthday parties do for children any way? Do they increase self-esteem? Socialization? Encourage friendships? Teach children to enjoy and increase ownership of material items? Promote competition between kids and their parents to do an even better party than the one they just attended? I really don’t know as these parties were not in vogue in the Thirties when I was a child. It was all my parents could do to feed, clothe, and provide shelter, let alone plan elaborate or even simple parties. I really don’t think that we were in the “party mood” at the time as we had very, very few so-called parties.
I probably had the only one that I know of for years at age four when a table from the kitchen was brought out to the lawn and several cousins were invited to attend a cake and maybe ice cream party. I know about this because two photos exist showing the table and the kids that were there — maybe four or five. Then there is another of me sitting on the edge of the stone wall sometime during the party. I really don’t remember my younger siblings having even that much of a party at all. Sometime during the day Mother would make a birthday cake and if we were very lucky someone would stop at the First National for a couple pints of ice cream at 19 cents a pint. We had to eat it quickly as we didn’t have freezers in those days.
A quick check of my five-year diary from 1946 to 1951 shows no parties for most of the siblings; two showed up with very small parties with one or two extra kids there. Most were home suppers with a birthday cake and some with no mention at all. BUT there was one thing that we all got every year without a hitch. Our dear Aunt Marian in Pennsylvania would send every one of her nieces and nephews a birthday card without fail. And her daughter has promised to do the very same thing even to this day. Having spent many years away from home and my family, I think I can understand why Aunt Marian did this — it’s a feeling of being “out of it” as far as your family goes; only I didn’t do the birthday card thing. Now I wish that I had.
