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www.southernsenior.info 5 These gatherings turned into birthday parties. Rich Coffman is a Colorado blogger under the name of ‘bravodeluxe’ and published an inform- ative study on the history of the birthday cake. Though many cultures have baked commemorative breads and cakes for thousands of years, the cur- rent fashion of birthday cake is believed to have been started in Germany in the 1400’s. Before then cakes were primarily marketed for wedding celebra- tions. However, they were still mainly for the wealthy. Thanks to the Industrial Revolution, 1712- 1942, with the advancement and proliferation of technology and materials, celebratory cakes be- came cheaper and more easily produced. This made them affordable for the average family. The tradition of lighting birthday candles on the cake goes back thousands of years and is rooted in Greek Mythology. The Greek goddess Artemis was celebrated for her association with the moon and a successful hunt. She was said to live in a cave and cakes brought to her in appreciation were lit with many candles to provide light. A lot of ancient cultures and religions believed smoke carried their prayers up to the gods and pos- sibly supports our “make a wish” tradition. In the 1700’s the Germans began the custom of putting one candle on the cake for each year in the age of the celebrant and extra ones for good wishes of many years to come. Even though cakes, candles and gifts are a part of our tradition in the United States and many other countries, but some cultures have very unique customs. In South America dancing the waltz is incor- porated into the celebration. In Mexico, Cuba, and Panama it is traditional to incorporate piñatas into the party. Still others require special attire to be worn by the birthday boy or girl. Whatever the style or history, it is quite evi- dent the world believes the day someone is born is an important date to celebrate. Lynne Adams Barze’