Birthday

[penguin]

Thanks very much for the replies. It's the last 2 lines I was not happy with. "mere" was a late replacement for "minor". I see now the problem it causes. What about standard gift tokens? The other thing is "shows of devotion" - a show is a pretence, after all. "real devotion" is a bit dull.
I like off rhymes like mosaic/decaying. I'm less keen on thinning/risen.

Best Wishes, Ray