The Talk

Submitted by Andy ....and I am going to require some type of therapy on this one ... :o(
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A favorite past time at our house is to catch an episode or two of Everyone Loves Raymond. God bless the TIVO! The show seems to epitomize the Long Island Italian family structure and how they work their way through life and its many questions. The episode we saw tonight was Raymond trying to tell his daughter about sex and why we are on the earth? What is the meaning of life? Amazing mom and I had a similar discussion today on the way to the hospital. What the heck went wrong? It took 48 years to get “the talk” and learn the meaning of life. I think I got the sex part figured out by now, but we talked about how relationships progress over the years.

One of my favorite mental photos, is the financial investment commercial that shows a young man running through a park passing an elderly couple walking hand in hand in the park. They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. And that one speaks volumes.

I was half kidding talking to mom, that as she worked through her daily meditation she put in a good word for me that as the years passed, the bada bing still had that zing. But before you go off with OH MY GOSH, you have to remember that the blog is our sharing our life with you, looking inward. And taking ourselves seriously sometimes is not as much fun as laughing at life together.

But getting back to the picture of the older couple, mom and I agreed that what makes a couple a couple is not any specific moment in time. It is a composition of many life experiences over the long haul. It is the hours of the day that turn into weeks, months and years of togetherness. The day you bring your child home, get a dog, buy your first home, burn dinner, wreck a car without getting hurt, see your child off to school, walk them down the isle, and on and on and on.

All these things both good and not so good, play out into the motion picture we call our life. And as mom frequently says; “It’s all good.” Its how we deal with each of these events and share both the laughs and burdens with those who are important to us.

Understanding always that love is the act of easing the hurt when you fall off your bike. Love is the act of saying I’m sorry when it wasn’t your fault. Love is the act of helping your child into their car seat, or a parent out of the car when they don’t move as quickly as they used to. Love is teaching a child to walk for the first time, or doing a moonwalk into the Doctors office with your mom. Love is what you make of it and how you share it.

At school, my daughters told me of a program pennies for patients. They are collecting pennies to help those stricken by Leukemia and other illness. I thought it was noteworthy that they wanted to go to their bank and get some money out of their bank accounts to give to the cause. It’s never too early to learn to love. Happy that they figured it out so early in the game.

Hello Dolly!

Submitted by Andy ----------

We have talked before about introspection and how the travel time to the hospital these past few months has allowed us time to talk, thing and remember. Today, when we were driving to Dallas, I just had to tell mom that somehow this experience has transformed her into our version of a great sage. I asked her if she had some extra time in her week, if she wouldn’t mind setting up a little “life works” kiosk on the side of a hill, giving her take on the world in general.

I found it amazing that some of the greatest political minds in the world were having difficulty resolving some of our generations biggest problems, and to some extent made a larger mess of things. Mom after all and by her own admission, has seen some pretty good and pretty heart wrenching things during her years. Maybe the key to making the planet a better place to live is to entrust it’s future in the moms of the worlds? Can you imagine the United Nations, Congress, Parliament or Tribal Councils composed only of mothers? Having a discussion in the kitchen, while stirring over a pot of sauce. Working through the differences without war or hate, having a mutual respect for the other and realizing that it is OK to disagree sometimes. I think we sometimes take for granted the wealth of knowledge and acute awareness that comes from our elders and our young as well.

I’d like to share a personal photo with you all. Kristen at religious education class over the weekend made a Prayer Box. And in that Prayer Box she was to draw a photo of the person she felt needed her prayers. I’ll let you see for yourself the TWO people she picked. Take a look at the detail of the photos, and the simplicity of the photos. Says a lot huh?

So take some time as you travel your day to listen to the young and those wise old birds in your life. I’ve truly enjoyed the time I have spent with the Dolly Momma, and my daughters help keep me grounded on what is important. You just may learn something, you thought you already knew!