My dad turned 91 today. And he shares his birthday with Queen Elizabeth II who is five years older than him. And this goes for an interesting conversation each year. I was on the phone with him this morning and being the simple man he is. A positive attitude to life and simplicity is a good combination for long life.

In fact, a story of his life is that my mom tried to change his birthday to 22 as she did not like the fact that he shared it with the Queen. She would insist that my dad was born past midnight on the 21st so it was indeed the 22nd even though stated otherwise on his birth certificate. This was reaffirmed by her belief in numerology that she was a 3 (having been born on the 21st of May) and my father had more traits that looked like a 4 (whatever that meant) - so had to have been born the next day. And so the never-ending story goes.

These are the sort of memories that one cherishes over the years. The quirks and warts of people that we remember them by. I am indeed blessed to have him as my dad and the only regret is that I could not be with him today, being the pandemic and all, but hope to make a trip soon to spend some time with him this year.

More:

Queen celebrates 96th birthday in Sandringham — https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-61167593