Birthday Cards

I was out with some friends, and the conversation suddenly came up........ what do you do with your old birthday cards? I had never thought of it before, even though when I did begin to think about it, I figured out that I have a definite system when it comes to dealing with birthday cards from birthday's past. Whenever I am cleaning my room which is about once every month, I come upon those cards and I read them over. So what do you ask makes me keep a birthday card and what makes me throw one away. If the card has a particularly pretty picture I may decide to have to framed so I keep it like the one with the colorful butterflies that my cousin gave me for my graduation. If the card says something particularly touching by the person who gave me the card I keep it like when my uncle wrote "I am thanking you for the words of comfort in your previous letter". Some cards have something printed on the inside, like a quote, and then I keep the card, and write it in my quote book . This is just one example, it's a quote from Giancarlo DiGratsi, "To embrace the wealth of the spirit, to revel in the wonders of life, to think, to remember, to dream- this is to know happiness". On the contrary, if the person who wrote out the card clearly did not put any thought into what he/she wrote (i.e. "Happy Birthday, -John"), I throw it away; sorry John but couldn't you have thought of something nice to say about me or wished me a happy, healthy year? Some of my friends admitted that they feel guilty about throwing away a birthday card that someone gave them for their birthday. Why? Are your friends or family going to come over and look through your personal things and see which birthday cards you still have and which ones you threw away? I mean can you picture your Aunt Dot coming to visit you and saying to herself, "Wow, she has my birthday card from her 15th birthday, 27th birthday, and 21st birthday; where did all the other years ago? I should have bought a different card". One of my friends admitted that he opens the card, reads it, if there is money in it, he takes out the money, and after his party or get together is over he throws the cards away. I wondered, does that mean he lacks sentimental values? I also wondered, does that mean I am a sap or a sentimental fool for keeping my birthday cards? No, and I am putting my stack of birthday cards back into my box, and reading them next month.