Apology

Dear Friends and Family:

Lately I've been feeling guilty about not keeping in better touch with some of my friends and family. Some of you know I used to be quite the avid letter writer back in the day. So to those of you that this applies to, I sincerely apologize.

You may wonder what is bringing this on? You see, about a year and a half ago, I lost someone very important to me. I think I've secretly been grieving silently for a while. I was very sad that this special lady wasn't around to share in my wedding and the birth of my sister's child.

You see not only was this wonderful woman a fantastic roll model, she is also the mother of my best friend and my mom's best friend. Without her around I feel like there is someone missing from all these important things.

Lately, my mom has been having a rough time of things. Her dad (my gramps), is battling alcoholism in his 70's. It's killing him. And the whole family is watching it happen. My mom is a natural "mother" figure and has been looking in on him since he moved to town. I can see the terrible strain she's under, and I can only imagine what it must be like to be going through all this without her closest friend by her side.

We've all been as supportive as we can for her but it's not the same as having that one outside true friend that is always on your side.

So let me finish with this: all of my friends and family are important to me. And I'm sooooo sorry if I have ever neglected telling any of you how much I love you.Love you, JLB

Rote Memorization - Worked for Me

I recently had a discussion with some friends about the value of some skills being memorized, particularly basic math. Is there really anything wrong with memorizing you multiplication tables?

My friend who is a teacher said in his science class not all his students can multiply. 7th grade and can't multiply? Don't you start that in 2nd grade??? How does this happen???

I remember in second and third grade going through the process of learning my multiplication tables. Boy what a pain. Everyday, the flash cards, the work sheets, reciting them aloud with the class. But with Mrs. Stevens and Mrs. Brown kept us at it until we had it down.

Is there really anything wrong with that? Does every single activity in school have to be enriching? Is there really anything wrong with drilling kids to know certain things?

I know all kids learn differently, yada, yada, yada. It was drilled into us in the ed program at WMU. But isn't giving kids flash cards to they can see it, reciting it so they can hear it, and worksheets so they can practice it, meeting the needs of many different kids. Yes there is value into teaching kids that they can figure it out with grid paper or blocks, but is that practical? You know I regularly carry grid paper in pocket for those occasions when I need to multiply. Yes for certain things I'll use a calculator, but for figuring a tip for the waiter/waitress, I do that math in my head.

So MEMORIZE your multiplication tables. I did.

Party Time

I've been getting invited to a lot of events lately. It seems that weddings, birthdays, and open houses are popping out from everywhere. Some I can't wait to go to, others I don't want to at all (Jilly--I can't wait for your wedding, you are not included in this bunch).

Are you obligated to get a gift to every event you are invited to or only the ones you go to?

Case in point, my brother-inlaw's little brother is graduating. If I'm invited to the open house (which I don't know if I will be yet even though its only in a couple of weeks) and I don't go, do I still have to give a gift?

What about for a wedding that you aren't going to, but the rest of your family is? How do you know what's proper in all these cases. I'm sure there's some book or research I could do on the subject, but I don't feel like it.

Any feedback?

Star Wars Rocked

Nuff said.

A Little Bird

Last night my husband and I went to visit his Grandma in the nursing home where she is currently recovering from chemo and an infection. I could tell when we got there that she was tired and had a long day. We asked her if she wanted us to leave so she could rest, and she said "No." We knew she would say no. She would never turn away family.

So we stayed for an hour or so and chatted with her. She started talking about this past Christmas and how wonderful it was to have everyone together under one roof for the holiday. She told us about how as she was preparing the house for the festivities she kept having a "little bird" tell her to "Enjoy Christmas because it may be your last." That's a very sad thought. It didn't seem to bother her as much as it bothered us when she said it. It's hard for us to imagine her not being the center, the rock of the family. It's hard to imagine, not having Christmas eve at her house. She definitely seemed more at ease about it then we did.

I actually haven't been able to shake this all day. And as she lies there trying to fight off this terrible infection eating away at her, she still seems at peace with the fact that it might be her time to go. Amazing lady that Evelyn!

I am also reminded of a Bob Marley song called "Three Little Birds"
It goes something like this:

Woke up this morning, smiled at the rising sun, three little birds perched by my doorstep. Singing sweet songs, a melody pure and true. This is my message to you. Don't worry about a thing cuz every little thing is gonna be alright.

Bizzaro-land

If your windows don't roll down, why would you go through a drive thru?

I'm still trying to figure this one out.

On my way down to Indy last weekend I encountered this strange situation. The woman in the car in front of me had her door open as she was placing her order at the speaker at the drive thru. Then she proceded to pull up about three feet short of the drive up window, get out of her car, walk up to the window and hand the woman her money. While she is waiting for her change, she picks up all the change around the window on the ground and pockets it. After she collects her change she gets back in her car, pulls three feet short of the next window to get her two cups of coffee.

Isn't it called a drive thru for a reason?

This had been bugging me since it happened. It wasn't so much that she violated the laws of the drive thru (well that was part of it--okay alot of it), but also that she pocketed all that loose change that was on the ground. Why didn't she give it to the lady working the register so her drawer balances, like an honest person? This whole scenario is disturbing.

Is this world full of dishonest, stupid people? I like to think not, but I'm beginning to wonder.

Family

Lately I've been giving a lot of thought to family. Family is very important. It's the only thing true in this world.

I love my family. My Mom is very giving. My Dad shows his love silently. My sister is an amazing young woman. My husband, I love him. I can't imagine my life without any of these people.

But my family extends further than this. I have grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. And of course when you get married your family grows by leaps and bounds overnight. And even though I don't see these people as frequently as I would like, I would still do anything for them because they are family.

Lately I've heard a lot about sisters fighting on all sides of the family. It really bothers me. "Grow-up and get along" is what I want to say to them all. You only get one family. Don't burn your bridges with them--you only get one chance in this life. Regretting not forgiving or helping a family member is the last thing I want to do in this life time.