We Forget

It’s easy to forget.  I forget all the time and go about my day without a care in the world. We drive to the grocery store. We open our windows to listen to the birds and to welcome the cool breeze in.  We sort through the mail, both paper and electronic.  We sip our tea on the deck and read a good book. We drive to soccer practice. We talk with friends about their new house.  We forget sometimes.

We do.

We forget.

I turned on the news this morning while I was folding towels and the picture that filled the screen was a black smokey sky and armed young people walking around a 15 foot cement wall smiling because they might be free from a world that has not been kind to them their entire lives.  Rebels in Libya have taken control of Gadhafi’s compound.

Can you imagine?

I cannot.

We live in such a beautiful country and yes, we have our many problems; homelessness, veteran care, healthcare issues, unemployment, and the list goes on and on, but, we are generally safe and secure in our homes and everyday lives.   We have so much to be thankful for.  We, as a society, follow the rules, have clean water available at any moment, walk the streets with our families without fear or worries and have luxuries so many other nations only dream about.  

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I feel for countries wanting their freedom to come and go, to enjoy sitting by the lake  with their family and friends, to educate their children, to buy the food they need, to read the books they want to read.  The list is long.

It’s easy to forget all that we have in this wonderful country.  The surplus of everything.  We get upset when we can’t download the school supply list on our iphones in an instant.  We complain when we have to pay more to fill up our luxury cars.  We forget.  

We forget there are people waking up to gunfire, to no running water, to a five mile walk to the nearest school that only has dirt for a floor and one soccer ball for 56 children.  We forget there are people who cannot download their favorite book to their e-reader.  We forget there are people who don’t even know what an e-reader is.

  

We simply need to be more gracious, more grateful, more kind, more giving to those we come in contact with every day.   We cannot forget.  We cannot.

Quiet is Not Overrated

The summer has come to an end here at our house and the boys are happily back at school with friends and textbooks and red felt tipped pens (which were quite the difficult supply to find, I’ll have you know.)   They’ve been in class for a week now and today is the first day that I have had a few moments to myself to, well, do nothing.

I’ve taken this morning to unwind a bit from the school supply shopping, hair cuts, doctor check-ups, orientation days, ice cream socials and clothes shopping (which is a whole other blog post for another day).   It’s been a quiet morning to say the least.

I’ve chatted with my neighbor from our decks, I’ve caught up on e-mails,  read a few of my favorite blogs, had two cups of tea, made chicken-salad for lunch later and am having a wonderful time.   Not a sound in the house.   It’s refreshing for me and has given me a chance to recharge my battery, so to speak, and refresh my thought filled mind.

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Quiet is one of my favorite sounds.  Is that possible?   It’s necessary in my life.   I’ve found that I’m in a better mood; feel happier, if I’ve had some quiet around me.  It doesn’t have to be a long span of time, but a good hour (or two or three) doesn’t hurt either.   In my book, quiet is not overrated.  It is a layer I desire throughout my week and so appreciate it when it makes its way into my calendar.

The candles can be smelled, the dishwasher hums, but no talking can be heard and no music is being played, just the pitter-patter of quiet.  Can you hear it?  I hope you can find a few moments to enjoy the breeze and listen to the quiet today.  Enjoy the peace.

I Want What I Have

I don’t have many wants in my life.  I really don’t.  Sure, I’d love to have a personal chef, or more time to read, but I seem to manage with my own salad making skills and always have a book in the car to read, should an extra ten minutes present themselves to me during a baseball game rain delay.

I am content.

That doesn’t mean I don’t have goals or dreams that I hope to reach or achieve one day.  It simply means, that along this journey of doing and going, I am happy with what is in front of me right now.  The view is pretty nice and many days it’s just plain majestic.  (I love that word.)

Perhaps as we age, we realize that the working hard to save money, going on a big vacation, or buying that dream house is nice and can be very enjoyable, but it’s using that saved money to make someone smile, feeling the love from your family while on that vacation and creating laughter in that dream house that we really desire.  

I have all that I need.  

I have different “wants” than I once had.  I want to appreciate my children while they are young and still learning the ins and outs of growing up. I want to sit quietly and listen to the words of the song on the radio.  I want to spend time with my husband and hold his hand and laugh at ourselves on the pages of old photo albums (you know, the albums that have real printed photos in them that are stuck to the page?).  I want to read and learn about so many things and to fill my heart with the beauty that surrounds my life.

My wants are simple.

Today, I want what life has to offer me on this fine Friday and to offer up my heart to those around me.  I want only what I am meant to have on this beautiful day.  I want what I have.

Things I Know For Sure

When you have a chance to sleep in, the neighbors will decide to mow the lawn.

Boys really do smell after being outside all day.

Reading a good book can show you pieces of yourself you didn’t know existed.

True friends know what you look like without all the gloss and still love you.

When we are still and listen, whispers can be heard, which can often sound so loud we cannot help but respond aloud.

There are books in the library that have never been read.

Adults still wonder what they are going to be when they grow up.

We all make mistakes even when we know better.

The laundry is never done and if someone says they finished the laundry, they are probably lying.

School supplies are expensive.

Technology is wonderful, helpful, but sometimes, it’s just annoying.

Cereal can be dinner.

A Growth Spurt

Just when you think you’ve reached your adult height, something comes along and you realize you still have room to grow.

My oldest son attended one of the many midnight showings of the new Harry Potter movie last night with nine friends.  The plan was to stand outside in line (luckily tickets had already been purchased, so getting in was a sure thing) for three hours until their movie time, see the movie and then have parents pick them up at 3:00AM.  Yes, you heard me right, 3:00AM.

I volunteered to take them all to the movie in our vehicle and luckily they all fit. Seatbelts mandatory.  I wanted to see the group and how they interacted so that I could rest assured they would be safe and together in line. As I pulled up to the house in a massive downpour, I was pleasantly surprised by their consideration for the girls getting in first and out of the rain and if there was enough leg room for the 6’2” boy in the middle.  Thank you’s were said by everyone for picking them up and for letting them use the umbrellas and blankets.  My anxiety was lessened instantly.

We arrived at the theater and the host of the group got out first to pick up the tickets and then everyone followed her to their appropriate line to wait and be teenagers, laughing, doing spells on everyone with their makeshift wands and keeping warm and dry together in their umbrella campsite. 

“Bye.  Thank you.  Thanks again. Bye.” was the last I heard of them as they opened their umbrellas and walked through the puddles to their line.

I arrived home and the clock ticked at the most unbelievable turtle's  pace.  This was the longest night of my parenting life.  We texted every forty-five minutes to confirm their wetness level and okness up until they were seated inside, umbrellas under their chairs and popcorn in hand.  The response to my last text asking whether or not they were inside was a simple four-word reply.  “Yeahhh!  No more txtng!”

I got the hint. 

I had to grow up as a parent and let the rope loosen and let them be.  It was not easy, but I did it.  I had to do it.  It’s the only way they can prove themselves to us and the only way we can prove to ourselves that we’ve done our job.   They need to be kids and sometimes they need to be kids without parents sitting in the parking lot (which I did not do - cross my heart and hope to die) or standing in line with them.  I must have grown three inches in one night.

I set the alarm (why I don’t know, because I watched every minute tick by for two hours and five minutes) and tried to relax.  Once I reached the theater, he and his friend hopped in the car and we were off to the safe and secure walls of our home.  He was safe AND had a great time.  I was tired, but I was happy. It was a  growth spurt for both of us, although I think I did a bit more growing than he did.  I think I could get used to the view from this new level.