In the years since announcing her divorce from Simon Konecki, Adele's fans have noticed a major change in the soulful singer.
Although she's undergone a clear physical transformation since then, a more important change that both well-wishers and closer friends observed in the months after the split was that she seemed a lot happier and enjoying herself in ways that would qualify as a lot of people's idea of living her best life.
So when Adele celebrated her 33rd birthday on May 5, it came as a major stage in a long personal journey for her. That likely has a lot to do with the adoring response her photo received.