A man in Arkansas who was born on February 29, 1940, technically celebrated his 21st birthday on February 29, 2024.
“I’m 84, but oh, don’t I wish I was 21,” Lee Muncy told ABC 10 during a recent interview. He is among a special group of people called leaplings who were born on leap day and wait for their birthdays to happen every four years, the outlet reported Thursday.
There's nothing like turning 21— but most people don't have to wait 84 years to get there! Meet Lee Muncy, a Leap Day baby finally celebrating a special milestone. https://t.co/iuvfGWcI8B
— KHOU 11 News Houston (@KHOU) March 1, 2024
This year is a leap year and the next time it happens will be in 2028, per USA Today.
The newspaper continued:
Leap day is an extra day that gets added to the calendar. During a leap year, which occurs every four years, leap day falls on Feb. 29, giving the shortest month of the year one added day.
The reason there are leap days, and years, is because of the Earth’s orbit.
The amount of days it takes for the Earth to complete a full revolution around the Sun is not a whole number. The 365 days we experience is actually 365.242190 days, according to the National Air and Space Museum.
Social media users shared their thoughts on the story about Muncy, one person writing, “You can finally have a beer Happy Birthday!!!”
“My mom turned ’21’ 4 years ago, and this year, finally made the big 22!!! Happy Birthday to all the leap babies!!!” another user commented.In 2020, staffers at a hospital in Florida welcomed several Leap Year babies and made sure they were dressed for the occasion in frog costumes, Breitbart News reported.
A photo shows the tiny babies wearing their outfits while napping:
We leaped for so much joy yesterday with our newborns at our Baby Suites and NICU dressed as frogs! 🐸 HOPPED You Had a Great Leap Year Day!
Posted by HCA Florida Osceola Hospital on Sunday, March 1, 2020
“We leaped for so much joy yesterday with our newborns at our Baby Suites and NICU dressed as frogs! HOPPED You Had a Great Leap Year Day!” HCA Florida Osceola Hospital wrote in its post.
