Friends, gotta ask you something, if you don't mind please. Do you ever have those days when you take this life too seriously? I mean the kind of day when you are so preoccupied with worry over what could go wrong for you that you forget about all of the things that went right? It happens to me all of the time, sometimes on a daily basis.
At times this life can be pretty much overwhelming. You know, you don't mean for it to happen that way. You can get up in the morning, refreshed from a good night's sleep and head out the door feeling like everything is "ok". But sometimes it doesn't take long for a day of bliss to turn into a day that you just wish was over fast. Been there? Done that?
Life's stressors have this way of overtaking us, sometimes burying us in a deep pile of stuff that has to be sorted through and dealt with each day. Some of us may worry about where the next pay check might come from or how to stretch the one we already have. Maybe we're concerned about our family members, how our kids are doing, how long will our health hold out for the good? Perhaps it might be that major life decisions need to be made....like selling a home and moving away or retiring from a job that you love. And here's one of my all-time favorites-VEHICLE TROUBLE. As a single woman with absolutely "zero" mechanical ability, I can't tell you the times that I've had to deal with flat tires, dead batteries, brakes that needed replacing, etc., etc. And believe me when I say this, I'd much rather ride 20 miles straight into a 25 mph headwind on a bike than to have to figure out what to do when a vehicle won't start!
As for me, I know that I've been taking life a little too seriously since the accident happened last August. Some days it seems as if I will never be better, never be dismissed from Dr. Chan's care. But today when I was at therapy, things looked better. They could tell I'd been working on my exercises and it showed. One of the things I was happiest about was the measurement they found when I turned "old lefty's" palm over as far as I could. Don't understand what the numbers exactly mean, but just a week ago, the measurement stood at 30 degrees. Today I had graduated up to 45 and that was good news to me. All of the other areas showed improvements as well. The only disheartening discovery was of the strength of my hands...the right one stood at 50 but poor "old lefty" could barely eke out a miserable 15. Guess there's a ways to go but I WILL get there. I'm sure of it. I realize that I have to start somewhere and the therapy room of the Kansas Orthopaedic Center is as good a place as any to accept that fact and keep "soldiering" on.
You know friends, I feel pretty blessed to go to work each day with a wonderful staff and over 250 of the greatest kids ever. And it's those kids that, by their very comments, help me to step back and not take life quite so seriously. I hear the dearest and sweetest of things every day coming the from the mouths of little people who truly mean no harm by what they say at times. Things like....
1.(when I have a cough drop in my mouth) "Mrs. Miller, your breath stinks."
2. (when I have a mint in my mouth) "Mrs. Miller, your breath smells really good."
3. (when they see how long I've been in a cast) "Mrs. Miller, I don't think you should ever be thinking about riding your bike again."
4. (when they find out how I got hurt that day) "Mrs. Miller, that wasn't a very smart thing to do, especially for an old person!"
5. (when they learn I am divorced) "Do you want me to find someone for you?" (LOL)
6. (I guess when they realize I'm the oldest teacher at school) "I just love your grandma skin Mrs. Miller." oh and I can't forget the newest thing, "Do you wear dentures Mrs. Miller? You know my grandma does."
Hey, I've got a smile on my face just typing the words. I've been taking this life way too seriously some days and my friends, it shows!
It's been a long time since August 12th last year. That was the day of the "making of the peanut butter sandwich" fiasco. It was the day that I put way too much merit in my lack of self-worth in assembling the "lowly" peanut butter sandwich one-handed. Things couldn't have gone any worse and before it was all over, an entire loaf of bread and one jar of opened peanut butter had been splayed all across the kitchen floor. What was I thinking? Why on earth did I even attempt such a thing only a day after surgery?
Long story-short, didn't care about the "5-second" rule, I just threw the whole mess in the trash and sat down on the floor and cried and cried. I cursed my stupid arm, an arm that only the week before had been perfect and whole. When it was all over and I went to wash my face off at the bathroom sink, I looked at that pathetic woman looking back at me in the mirror and gave a little smile. I knew then that life was just way, way too serious and things needed to be put in their proper perspective. For those days that I do remember it, I am thankful for these the littlest of things. For those days that I forget, well I guess that I'm only human. Have a good evening my friends and remember to not take life so seriously. It works out better that way! :)
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