And other small miracles
Our family lives in suburbia, or rather 5 sixths of us do.
California can be a deceptive State. People are familiar with the glories of San Francisco and the glitter of L.A. but the vastness is often missed. The greater part of the State is referred to as ‘wilderness.’ The ‘wild’ part of wilderness seems far more threatening than English countryside, tame, safe and comforting. This is where our ‘sixth’ spends the majority of her time, now that she is an adult and has choice. What else could I have expected from this ’save a whale,’ ‘hug a tree,’ ’stroke a banana slug’ kind of offspring? Although she is out in the wilds, modern technology keeps us connected through the telephone, although I would prefer her mobile to be nearer a cellular base station, or maybe just closer.
We talk late in the evening whilst small people slumber. We watch the same sunset, several hundreds of miles apart. She talks, I listen. I can hear the wind rush about her as she charges down a brush filled hill, rough terrain without a trail. She forges her own path as she talks and walks and weeps, the trials of youth, no longer trivial.
I learned that tears were a sign of weakness. I chose to teach a different lesson. Shed a tear, skip a gall stone.
Minutes tick by as the sun sets and darkness settles outside and in.
I remember my own tears on rare occasions. Dump the baggage, lighten the load.
My tears are rare because I know that they incapacitate me. They reduce me to an immobile soggy heap. This is the kind of multitasking that I cannot envisage.
To weep is to cease to function.
Weeping and talking, make a poor combination, too much gulping.
Weeping and walking! It’s out of the question.
Weeping, walking and talking?
In the dark?
She’s the closest thing to “Wonderwoman” that I’ve come across in this lifetime.
Stumble it!
June 2nd, 2008 at 6:10 am
i am good at crying. i am a firm believer in it. it cleans your eyes and gets rid of the stone in your throat. maybe you could practice the walking and crying first and then add the talking once you get the hang of it? your wonderful daughter could teach you…
June 2nd, 2008 at 7:50 am
i am also a great cryer.
June 2nd, 2008 at 10:25 am
I hate crying, but do it!
June 2nd, 2008 at 12:25 pm
I remember a few years back, driving from Hollywood to my friend’s house just off PCH. We had to drive through one of the canyons, which is actually her school run. I swear I thought I’d taken a wrong turn and ended up in the middle of nowhere. A bit scary actually, until we came to the traffic light and made a right turn.
June 2nd, 2008 at 12:28 pm
I remember driving from Hollywood to a friend’s house just off PCH. We had to go through one of the canyons and I swear I thought we were lost in the middle of nowhere. I was just about to raise the alarm when we came to a traffic light, made a right turn and there we were. Very odd!
June 2nd, 2008 at 12:29 pm
Sorry!
June 2nd, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Sound like you are smitten with this one.
June 2nd, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Is she OK?
June 2nd, 2008 at 3:37 pm
Sometimes it just happens. But it is healthier than holding it in.
June 2nd, 2008 at 3:38 pm
Oh, Maddy, this is simply beautiful. Not in the poetic-prose kind of way but in that mother-love-for-my-amazing-woman-child way. I hope more mothers find ways to express their love and admiration for their daughters as they grow and conquer the world.
What a lovely tribute to your first-born.
June 2nd, 2008 at 5:19 pm
I can cry while doing anything! Except talk, depending on the nature of the crying. I find crying very liberating. But I only ever cry for other people or at happy endings these days. Is it a sign of age that nothing bad ever happens to me anymore?
June 2nd, 2008 at 6:59 pm
i too learned tears are a sign of weakness and wanted to teach a different lesson to my kids. i hope they’ve learned. i think they have. but i still have a hard time shedding them myself in front of other people. lately though they seem to be just below the surface…
June 2nd, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Hi,
I just voted for this blog for Bloggers Choice Awards.
Would you and friends return the favor at:
http://www.bloggerschoiceawards.com/blogs/show/21620
Thanks,
SpEdLaw2
June 2nd, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Hi,
I just voted for this blog for Bloggers Choice Awards.
Would you and friends return the favor at:
http://www.bloggerschoiceawards.com/blogs/show/21620
Thanks,
SpEdLaw2
June 2nd, 2008 at 11:27 pm
And when one weeps, the nose tends to go….. And it is the same sunset we all see…..