a friend--a very good friend who is miles ahead of me in many ways, and regrettably now lives miles away--observed about me that i am "about the experience."
it's lovely to have friends who see things about you that come straight from the core of your identity, and deliver them to you still warm. i'm neither proud nor ashamed of this truth; simply, i am about the experience--the things that don't matter, necessarily, or at least aren't crucial to the moment, like the color of the tablecloth at a cookout, or the foil-wrapped truffles that i dole out during daddy's-gone-days.
i know i'm not alone in this, else there would be no such places as anthropologie, no photography blogs or teeny tiny bakeries, no stores devoted utterly to linen. no hedonism, no sparkling beverages and definitely no inflatable barbecues. although that last one is not something i would ever want, not having a need to cook while swimming.
so anyway, who isn't about the experience?
all of this is a preamble to say that i'm hurtling toward critical mess and it's very nice. my hair is an oil slick. it's endangering local wildlife. my house isn't dirty, thanks to coco the unflinching, but it's clutter central and i am so cool with it.
because i'm pacing myself emotionally to get through the home stretch until bim is through working all hours on a case that {finally!} goes to trial next week. i sang that last bit in opera voice.
some of the experiences of today included the following.
i totally lost it with Ally when she wouldn't let me get near her hair. i'm not unreasonable about her hair; we don't brush it every day. i know it can hurt to have a comb pulled through your curls and i treat the experience with all the sensitivity it deserves--usually. today i was done negotiating. i wrestled my 3 year-old to the floor, overpowered her and held her arms down with one arm while i brushed not gently with the other. did i mention i was yelling? did i mention she was hysterical? meanwhile Liv looked on from a safe distance wearing an expression of mixed horror and relief. that's one experience i'm not about.
later in the day she stood at the podium in primary and recited the four lines of her "talk" perfectly. she had no idea what any of it meant. i suppose that's not really the point anyway.
signing off for tonight.
6 of you said:
Ah, the circle of life. Hair life, that is. I hope you're not offended that I laughed when I read this part. Some things are just not negotiable and you join an infinite number of mothers of curly-haired daughters who have employed just such tactics to make that point. Try not to beat yourself up (because I assume that you are) over the resultant physical combat. Ally will be no worse off, and just might come to know that sometimes it's best not to mess with Mama. And Liv? I think it's quite amazing how many life lessons a younger sibling learns just by watching older ones!
Love you, K.
When you are working on that hair I hope you will remember how much it lights me up when I see a picture of it.
When are you going to put up that picture of her GG Grandmother's curles?
It would be pretty fun to see a picture of the three of you pasted together.
Happy Memorial Day! I am off for a bike ride to Hiram/Kirtland with the camera.
Let's go somewhere!
I love that you are 'about the experience' and I'm trying little by little to become more that way. Right now I'm trying to become more 'about the experience' of a kitchen remodel that gets my wood floors very dirty every day. I only clean them about once a week; consequently the carpet on the stairs is kinda nasty.
Did I ever mention that I shook Jamie really hard one time when she was a toddler? Don't tell the authorities please. Guess what? She doesn't remember it and she says she feels like she had a great childhood. Whew!
I don't brush Lyza's hair every day either. If we are going out I just gather it all up and put it in a sort of messy bun that makes it look like I meant for it to look that way :)
*Today Elyza whipped her skirt at my face, so I ripped it out of her hands and did it right back to her. Childish? A bit, but it didn't hurt her and I was able to vent my frustration and teach her a lesson at the same time. So win/win, yes? ;)
Call me...we'll talk.
I've had too many of those experiences. It's not pretty and I'm not proud after it's over.
I've heard the Mason Pearson brush (http://www.ballbeauty.com/mphowto.htm) is great for detangling hair. I don't know. I don't have $$ to spend on it. If you do let me know.
Seriously...call me any time. I love you! I wish I was in the experience more. I'm working on it. <3 <3
It's true. I don't remember my mom shaking me. Maybe that's why I can't remember plots of books I read or movies I watch... Although, it's a blessing because I can pick up a book I've read about a year or two later and be surprised by the ending again! Thanks, Mom!
Post a Comment