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Happy birthday and birthday cakes

The song " Happy birthday to you" is sung all over the world just before the birthday boy or girl blows out the candles on the cake. It is so simple in melody and lyric that children as young as three can sing it without hesitation. The song， with its original title " Good Morning to You" ， was written in 1893 by the two sisters， Mildred and Patty Smith Hill. They were the daughters of a progressive Kentucky couple， who believed in female education at a time——the mid-nineteenth century—— when it was still a novel idea and who trained their two daughters to be school teachers. They were long involved in elementary education， and Patty， in particular. She achieved considerable prominence4 as a pioneer in kindergarten education， and for several decades a major spokesperson for preschool education. She taught at Columbia University's Teachers College from 1905 to 1935，and at her retirement became one of the first women to be named a professor emeritus by Columbia.

A birthday cake with burning candles is also indispensable at one's birthday party. It may derive， distantly， from the ancient Greek practice of offering to Artemis， goddess of the hunt and of the moon， a round honey cake into which a candle was stuck. After German bakers invented the modern birthday cake in the Middle Ages， a similar custom was adopted for the invocation of good spirits at birthdays. The cake， ready by morning， would be surrounded by burning candles， in a kind of protective fire circle， and they would be kept lit all day， until dessert time at the evening meal.

The candle-blowing-out custom may be associated with candles' dual meaning at birthdays. Some people believe that each birthday is another step toward the end， and what we celebrate at birthday gatherings is not only our growth， but our transience.Thus，candles at birthdays are symbols of duality，life and death，hopes and fears， increase and loss， and so on.

（编辑：何佩琦）