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Sotetsu
More backyard beauty,
my miniature Sotetsu plant growing in a pot in my
yard. I bought this plant at my neighbor's garage sale
about 2 years ago.
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Wednesday,
07.24.2002
Laugh Loudly.
I have a Daily Thought calendar on my desk at work that a thoughtful
friend gave to me for Christmas last year. I enjoy my
morning ritual of flipping to the next day to read the tidbit of
wisdom accompanied by a Bible verse. I liked today's
thought:
Never be ashamed of laughter that's too loud or singing that's too joyful.
"Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing. Then they said among the nations, "The Lord has done great things for them. "
-Psalm 126: 2 NKJV
I really like
that. If someone else is laughing loudly or singing joyfully
then obviously they have something to be happy about. Instead of
looking askance at them and saying, "oh my goodness, how
rude," we should rejoice with them for "the Lord
has done great things for them" as the verse
suggests.
When I read it
this morning, I immediately thought of my Mother who often
thinks that people who laugh loudly or make a
"spectacle" of themselves by being anything less than
demure is uncouth. I often believe that Mom is really missing
out on the joys of life by being so curmudgeonly.
Dad, on the
other hand, really lives life -- and he enjoys it. It's funny
how opposite they are. I like to think that I inherited his
spirited attitude toward life in addition to his wavy hair,
droopy eyebrows, single eyelids, broad shoulders and sensitive
stomach.
My Mother's
general state of grumpiness has been bothering me. She often
doesn't seem very happy and I automatically feel that it's my
obligation as the Only Child to help rectify that. Often,
however, I end up trying to force her to do something or go
somewhere and she gets even more grouchy and accuses me
of "bugging her." I believe that her downward spiral
into grumpy oblivion is being caused by not getting out of the
house enough, not having any hobbies, and opting not to
socialize with anyone. Personally, I think it's just sad not to
enjoy your retirement years.
I would hate to
think that during my golden years that I would be doomed to stay
at home and pass the time by watching TV and reading. I don't
want my schedule to be dictated by the TV Guide. I hope that I
will continue to be active and energetic 30, 40 or even 50 years
from now.
Don't get me
wrong, Mom has her moments of sunshine in her eyes when the dark
clouds lift from over her head. Those are the moments that I
really enjoy. Of course, my love for her isn't reserved for her
"good days." I love her and Dad with all my heart.
It's just that seeing her looking so unhappy just kills me.
Knowing that there's little or nothing that I can do to help
makes me feel even more helpless.
My wish for her
is to be able to laugh without inhibitions, to let a smile grace
her lips more often than a frown, and to allow herself to get
out of her comfort zone to experience new things so that she can
keep growing and learning instead of staying stagnant. Is that
so much to ask? Unfortunately, sometimes I think it is.
Perhaps a
grandchild might change all that... Only time will tell.
FLASHBACK: This
time last
year, I was suffering from the Atomic @$$ Blast.
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