Listening Ears and Thinking Caps

Life was so much simpler when I got the daily reminder to use my listening ears and thinking cap. When the teacher asked us to put them on, I would pull the imaginary ears and cap out of my desk and tie them onto my head. I'm sure this looked rather odd to the children sitting around me, but I took this job very seriously - almost as seriously as locking my lips and throwing away the key. Wouldn't the world be a wonderful place if we still did this as adults?

I know without a doubt that just the act of stopping to put on my ears and cap made me a better listener and a more thoughtful person. I also remember swallowing many unneeded words just by throwing away the key. I know for a fact some of those words where really hurtful because they left a bitter taste on my tongue. But better to be bitter there than burning someone else with my acid.

I don't advocate refraining from all strong words, as some are very important to share for growth and out of love. But, they should only be shared after good use of a thinking cap. I'd also check the other person to ensure they are wearing their listening ears before trying to converse with them.

There are a few amazing people I've met who wear their ears so consistently that the ears actually become attached and can never be removed again! These people are rare and very special. Most of the time these are the ones who have mind melded with their thinking cap as well. I aspire to be one of these people. Until I am there, I've learned that the best plan for me is to keep the key to my mouth lock permanently lost.

By the way my listening ears are Vulcan. In case you were wondering.

Don't Cry Over Spilled Milk Glass

My mother-in-law just came to visit and as usual she brought treasures. She owns a resale store and loves to surprise us with unusual gifts from her store. This time she brought some beautiful milk glass bowls. As we were admiring them, she noticed a small chip on the bottom of one. I love the comment she made when she saw the chip. She said "Oh, they were so beautiful, that I didn't notice they weren't perfect!"

I would love to have that as a life motto. To see the beauty first and the cracks later. So often the brokenness is the place I put my focus. I wonder how much beauty I miss with my foggy focus?

She was driving back home in the rain today with wipers that will soon need replacing. We decided to put Rain-X on her windshield. The instructions were to rub on the Rain-X until the windshield was foggy. Then after a brief wait, we wiped the glass clean. She was surprised at how clearly she could see, even in hard rain with older wipers.

I've been going through an old wiper phase myself. This would be easy enough to fix if it were only my car wipers. Unfortunately it's my life wipers. I haven't been through any major storms lately just a bunch of little showers. But I'm afraid I've started missing the rainbows.

I don't have all the answers but I know the One who does. And after this weekend at least I know what to pray for. The ability to see the beauty first, and a giant bottle of Rain-x.

Fear is not my Chauffeur

Was listening to Incubus sing Drive this morning. I knew something was up when they were able to cut through the haze of drama going on in my head with their lyrics.

How often do you doubt your decisions or let fear of failure keep you from doing something amazing? Maybe you don't struggle with this at all. If you don't, I applaud you and I'd love to hear your secret of success in this area.

In the spirit of transparency, I will admit that this is a struggle for me at times. Most days I wake up with confidence and hope. On those days the sun shines even in the rain and I love every minute. Then a morning will come when I think the sky is falling.

I love this old MTV comedy program called The State. One of the skits I still refer to is the Inbred Brothers. Two hillbilly brothers repeatedly hit each other over the head with a board all the while saying "What am I doin'?" I'm not a fan of slapstick comedy, but this scene hit home for me. Many times I feel like I pick up the sticks of fear and doubt and beat myself with them. On a smart day I may even say "What am I doin'?"

When I finally get past the fear of failure or the place where I question my goal, beautiful things are created. In fact I've come to realize that it is the process of crawling through the fear that creates the beauty. I needed to write about this as a reminder to myself today. If it helps you to drop some boards of your own then that's even better, because I'll need lots of boards for the project I'm working on. I've got a ladder to build and it's time to get started.

Oil & Wipers Mix

Spent the morning at the car dealership getting an oil change and new wiper blades among other things. As usual I spent several hours waiting. And as usual I stood in the parking lot shaking my fist and swearing upon the graves of long dead ancestors, never to return. But just as a addict returns to his dealer, I return to mine.

My biggest issue with my dealer is the satisfaction survey. Every visit they tell me the same thing "You will receive a survey in the mail. Please respond with a five to let us know what a great job we did." I have this creepy feeling that I've secretly been hypnotized during the encounter. I half expect to hear the guy in overalls preface this request by pulling out a pocket watch and saying "Look deeply into my eyes, you are now getting sleepy..... and finish with.....when I count to three and snap my fingers you will never remember we talked." I like to call this the Tasty China Restaurant syndrome. If you've got to tell me the auto service is good or the food is tasty than there is a problem. Those are the sort of things I should be able to figure out on my own.

The second issue I have with the dealership is the upselling. I ask for an oil change and he asks me if I want fries or a new muffler with that. I think I might try this at work one day. Okay sir, I see we have you scheduled for a hemorrhoidectomy today. Well aren't you lucky to come in today during our secret sale! Our doctors are slashing hemorrhoids and prices for the next 4 hours only. That's right, if you sign right now you can also get a cataract surgery for half price. No cataracts? No problem, we can substitute a liver biopsy for no additional charge. BTW would you like fries with that?

Actually the sales associate I worked with today was very nice and professional. He didn't even remind me about the survey! Of course when I get the survey I'm going to give him a five. In fact I think I should go check the mailbox and make sure I haven't missed the survey. I absolutely must make sure he gets a five. Why am I so sleepy and hungry? I could really use some fries and another oil change right about now.

Speaking in Tongues and Throwing Rosetta Stones

How exciting it would be to switch from English to other languages on a whim! Because of my job as a nurse, I come in contact with many people who have English as their second language. This week alone it would have been handy for me to know Chinese (Mandarin), and Spanish. Other weeks I wish for a knowledge of Japanese and Farsi. On occasion a limited understanding of Russian would be helpful. But for all my great aspirations, at times I even struggle with English. This causes me to fear the language learning centers of my brain have become closed forever.

I love to see the joy in a person's eyes as I try to communicate with them in their native language. My humble attempts are encouraged and I'm patiently helped along as I walk with crutches through a new vocabulary. But at the end it always turns out the same. For the Hispanic speaking person I can instruct in the retrieval of a pencil and paper for the exam. I can even impress them with my knowledge of colors and numbers. Then for the grand finale I name their articles of clothing and tell them that the year is 1986. But that's about as far as it goes. When I encounter Korean speaking individuals, we can have a very exciting conversation using the words I learned while watching Korean soap operas and cooking shows. We discuss barbecue, pickled cabbage and I can instruct them to eat quickly. I consider myself the expert in saying "Hello" in Korean, because I can distinguish between the proper word for the phone verses the "in person" greeting. I could also call you an old woman, mother or grandmother. And if you really upset me, I'll call you a savage, if I can remember how to pronounce it. But none of these words are very helpful to my patients.

One of my favorite pastimes is going to the Asian market. This helps me learn to distinguish the differences in the languages spoken around me, and the food is super yummy. My family is not as pleased to see me return from the market. I have been known to return with pickled eggs, octopus dumplings and ice cream made from beans. This changes completely when my mother-in-law goes with me. She opens my eyes to another world - a world of exciting foods and new words that I never would have found on my own. I walk through the aisle with confidence when she is by my side. On those days I read the jars, bottles and boxes with the ease of an expert linguist. It is as simple as saying "Please tell me what this one says?"or "Should I get this one?" She kindly shows me what I would like and never laughs when I pick up the more unusual items. She is an inspiration to me in many ways. Knowing her has caused me to be more sensitive to the struggles of those around me who don't have English as their primary language.

Because I need to communicate frequently with foreign language speaking individuals, I try to imagine myself in their country, walking around struggling to understand. It is a very humbling experience even in my imagination. I'm not sure if I will ever be comfortable speaking another language but I will continue to try and learn. Because there are many worlds, and foods, yet to explore.