17 Things We Learned

Linking up with Emily P. Freeman to share What We Learned This Summer....


1.  How to do Caleb's sleepy rolling thing.

Our friends' house, where we went for dinner and a photography lesson.

Ever since he was a baby, Caleb has put himself to sleep by thrashing rhythmically back and forth on his pillow.  I used to go in and pull him away from the wall because he banged his head against it over and over.


Well.  There's more to it than meets the eye.  There is a very specific hand placement under the pillow and an exact angle beyond which you do not roll.  He graciously demonstrated and coached me through it.  It took me a few tries to get it right.  He had to get down and demonstrate again.  But when I finally got it right, I realized, hey! this is pretty soothing.


2.  Apple Pencils have to charge because they have palm rejection and pressure sensitivity.

Gypsy.

Here all this time I've thought Apple Pencils are just little rubber sticks and had no idea they have to charge.  And when I found out they do charge, I couldn't understand why, until I did some research.


3.  Subway has a great easy online order/pickup system.

Also with nifty graphics so you can build your own sandwich online.


4.  Even if someone lives to be 96, you're still not ready for them to die.

Kelman, posing for us.

I'm not sure what age you have to be when people stop assuming you'll be around next year or until the next family wedding.  But 96 is pretty old.  You take lots of pictures.  You give your Christmas present early.  You don't make long-term assumptions.


And still.  When she passes...it shocks.  And hurts.  And leaves a gaping, ragged hole that you thought you should've been able to predict.  It isn't right.


Death is still our great enemy.  Even at age 96.

5.  I feel tons better when I eat carefully--no headaches, no stomachaches, energy, alertness, and no self-loathing.

Do I believe this when there's a fresh cake on the counter?  No I do not.  But it is true.  I feel crappy when I eat crappy (after the rush of dopamine wears off from the initial pleasure of eating junk.  Mmmm, junk.) and I feel great when I eat in a thoughtfully planned way.


6.  I am highly motivated by not disappointing people or having people be mad at me.

I realized this shortly after school let out in June.  My dearest wish for the summer was to spend lots of time lying on my tummy in a patch of sun, reading endless novels.  But I felt a subtle, nagging anxiety when I started doing it.  I was afraid of what Jason (who sees me more than other people), or, by extension, everyone else, would think of me, idly lying around instead of spending my summer cleaning out the garage or something.


Yes, I am a person who manages to be stressed out by leisure.  And a lot of it stems from my intense [neurotic] need for other people to approve of me.


7.  I have a feeble belief in heaven.

What do I think will happen to me when I die?  Hey, I've taught enough Sunday school to know the answer to that.  I'll go to heaven.  Right?


Right?


That's an easy answer in Sunday school.  But what if you're watching your loved one take labored breaths in the hospital bed from which she will never rise?  What about when those breaths get slower and more labored?  What's the answer then?  What happens next?


Death truly is a darkness before which we can only stand on the rim and strain to peer in.  And watching someone slip into that black mystery once again hugely challenges my faith.

8.  Our bodies aren't as cool as they used to be.  

Our friends, snuggling while simultaneously teaching me how to use my camera!

So Jason put it one day at the playground when we were playing with the kids but I had to get off the swings before I barfed.  I used to swing and SWING at recess, as high as the top bar!  And I never felt sick.


I agreed, yes, our bodies are getting older.  Then I remembered, and said, "Maybe it's my prescription that makes me feel sick!" before realizing that makes me sound even older.


9.  You don't have to be eloquent to be encouraging.

My dear friend at church heard that Jason's grandmother passed away.  She immediately gave me a hug and starting tell me that "the Lord will help you.  He helped me."  She has a mental disability, so she did not use big words or complex philosophy.  She just reached out and cared for me, and shared her faith that God will take care of me.  I was blessed and encouraged and humbled and convicted all at once.  How many times have I said nothing because I wanted to make sure I sounded clever?  When it's not cleverness that encourages, it's caring.

10.  Our pastor for worship has a pre-med degree.

Practicing close-ups.

Maybe that comes in handy during hospital visits?


11.  When people say their grandparent died, it's a bigger deal than I've acknowledged.

Admittedly, when my own grandparents died, it was sad--rather briefly.  I didn't have a daily relationship with any of them, since they lived half a continent away.  They were old, they were far away, and my life didn't change when they had passed on.


Some people have regular relationships with their grandparents.  Sunday dinners.  Social events.  Frequent conversation.  When those kinds of grandparents die, it leaves a hole in one's life.  It changes things.  And the sadness is very real and may be every way you turn.  I haven't spent my life being very sensitive to that.

12.  All about Lu La Roe.

What IS Lu La Roe??  I finally had opportunity to ask a trusted friend this question and actually get an answer.  A Lu La Roe booth/trailer showed up at a community festival and we agreed to check it out together, but before we set foot inside I pulled her aside and asked this question.


Basically, Lu La Roe works like Tupperware or any of the zillions of other more modern products that sell via those parties you're never sure if you should be flattered that you got an invitation to because the hostess is actually involved in selling you something.  LLR's big thing is leggings--really comfy (pricey) leggings that come in really unique, busy prints that mostly seem to be limited edition.  Many are holiday themed.  Then, to go with the leggings, they have tunic-length tops in several styles, and a few styles of dresses.  Apparently LLR is big with teachers because they are comfy but meet dress code.  And I'm thinking shamrock clothing appeals to elementary teachers too.


13.  The heart-wrenching life story of Caleb's friend from speech therapy and Sunday school.

Child abuse, criminal neglect, brain injury, emergency foster care, daring daylight rescue, half siblings, drug abuse, court orders, and five-a-week therapies.


All this through tears in the speech therapy waiting room, straight from Memaw's mouth.  This sweet boy, God bless him.

14.  "MMMbop" has reasonably edifying lyrics.

You have so many relationships in this life

Only one or two will last

You go through all this pain and strife

Then you turn your back and they're gone so fast

And they're gone so fast

So hold on to the ones who really care

In the end they'll be the only ones there

When you get old and start losing your hair

Can you tell me who will still care

15.  You have to hold the epi pen in for five seconds.

Thankfully I was just told this and have not yet had to experience this.  *shudders*


16.  You have to raise the mower blades to get into the shed.

So it probably would've been better if Jason had taught Ada how to mow instead of me teaching her, because he apparently already knew this.


We all know now.  And incidentally, revving the engine and giving it lots of "oomph" on the way into the shed, per my advice, does not actually lead to successful parking of the mower, if the blades are still down.


17.  How to fold up the treadmill.  

It's either not as heavy as I thought all these years, or, because I've been working out so much, I am now strong enough to do it all by myself.

It's been an educational summer.  How about you?