Five years ago, a dad named Oliver celebrated his son’s birthday. There was cake, presents, and family gathered around the table as everyone sang “Happy Birthday.” Someone was even kind enough to film the heartwarming moment.

Only, when Oliver watched it back later, he was deeply ashamed by what he saw.

Dad realizes he was staring at his phone during his son’s birthday celebration

In a vulnerable post on X, Oliver recently re-shared the footage. In it, we see his son growing excited as the cake and lit birthday candles arrive, while the whole family sings. But Oliver’s eyes are glued to his phone the entire time.

Oliver shared, along with the video, a thoughtful note of reflection after all these years:

“Today we are celebrating another birthday and so I pulled up the video to remind myself how it looks to be absent from a moment you can’t buy back.”

Oliver tells Upworthy that “it always jabs me in the chest a little bit when I watch the video and see how excited he was. I am sure he doesn’t mind so much (kids are so forgiving), but I know that I missed it.”

In the original post, he adds that his son gets a little less excited about his birthday each year, as kids do. The childhood magic fades........

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