#831 – First Birthday Presents

I sometimes wish that I were one year old again. I’ve gone to a lot of first birthday parties recently. I would love my own personal cake and the freedom to get as much of it on my face as I could.

I went to my goddaughter’s first birthday this past weekend. It was a great day celebrating her young life and looking forward to what’s to come. She received a lot of awesome toys, including Thomas the Tank Engine, Wonder Woman Little People and a bunch of Disney Princess toys.

I don’t remember my first birthday but I imagine these are some gifts I would have liked to receive back in 1982.

• Fisher-Price Tape Recorder: I don’t know if I was saying much when I turned one. At this point, though, I speak so much that I’ve gotten used to hearing my amplified voice. This tape recorder could have prepared me to preach. Speaking of which, if you’d like to hear my message from Good Friday you can listen here.

• He-Man Action Figures: I didn’t know He-Man action figures were out as early as 1982. I remember watching He-Man and the Masters of the Universe pretty often, though I much preferred G.I. Joe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. My young nerd self would have wanted a He-Man action figure, but all his small weapons might have proved just as dangerous to me as they were to Skeletor.

• The Magnavox Odyssey 2: I didn’t get my first video game system until my 13^th birthday. I loved my Sega Genesis and beat Sonic the Hedgehog 2 on numerous occasions. When I turned one, though, my parents could have gotten me the Magnavox Odyssey 2. I probably didn’t have that much fine motor control as a one-year-old, but I’m pretty sure the games were pretty simple. I’ve seen my nieces and nephew navigate an iPad, I’m pretty sure they could handle an early video game system.

• Star Wars Figures: There were nine Star Wars figures released in 1982, including the Cloud Car Pilot, which I actually had. I didn’t have a lot of Star Wars figures when I was younger, but I had some. Sadly I don’t know what happened to them. If I still had them I would be waging all sorts of intergalactic battles. Even though I turned one in 1982, I still love playing with toys.

I’m glad I’m not turning one but I was more than happy to celebrate that my goddaughter did. The more I hang out with my nieces, nephew and goddaughter, the more I realize how precious children are. I love all those little kids more than I can express, which gives us just a small glimpse into how God feels about us.

What gifts would you have liked to receive when you turned one?