It’s been quite a week for our country. Regardless of which side we were on, I think we’re glad it’s over and… we’re tired. Therefore, I’m not going to write about anything that requires much thought this week. I’m just going to muse, as usual, about three random things pertaining to kids and dogs and such.
1} The Preschooler has been telling us about a special resource they have in her classroom at school. It’s called a solutions kit. This came up the other day when one of her sisters was tattle-telling on her. {Tattle-telling is a favorite pastime in our house}. She said, “You’re supposed to go to the solutions kit and see what it says to do.” In this case, if the problem is someone is tattling, the solutions kit instructs you to “ignore it.” Or, as she says, “You just ‘ig-no’ it.” I think this is pretty sound advice. The world would be a much more peaceful place if we could all learn to “ig-no” a large chunk of what annoys us. She went onto explain that there are solutions for all sorts of other problems, too. Like, if two people want the same toy the solution might be to “take turns” or “share.” If the problem is you’ve been hit or hurt, the solution kit would advise you to “go get a grown-up.” If you want something done for you, “ask nicely.” And, so on.
I think the preschool is onto something with this kit. I realize not every problem, particularly those of the adult sort, can be solved with a simple two or three word solution. And, of course, we can’t ignore every injustice and wrongdoing. But, a great many of our more personal problems could at least be lessened if we had basic conflict resolution reminders in our homes and workplaces and social media environments. If I make a kit for our house I’m going to add, “Go get a grown-up who has already had their coffee” or “Go get a grown-up who is holding a glass of wine,” for those times when the problems arise at more high-stress times of day.
2} I recently found this piece of paper in the 4th Grader’s room. Based on the heading, it’s a list of laws she and one of her friends came up with for an imaginary country they created. Laws #1-5 are a bit confusing, but the rest of them were self-explanatory:
Based on law #6, I’ll assume their country is neither pedestrian nor bike friendly. Laws #7 and #8 sound fairly practical. You never know when you might need to identify yourself or when you might have a sudden drop in blood sugar. But, laws #9 and #10 sound like a nightmare for introverts like myself. How exhausting. For now I think I’ll just stick with America, flawed as she may be. At least I can spend my evenings in my yoga pants and fleece pullover since I’m not required by law to attend a party every night.
3} We may not be able to agree on anything political this week, but surely we can all agree that dogs are strange creatures? This is the posture ours assumes for minutes on end when a person ~ or dog ~ of interest walks down our street. It’s remarkable how well, and for how long, she can balance herself upright.
If she sees a squirrel or one of her favorite dog friends, she’s been known to walk backwards like this all the way up the incline of our front yard until she reaches the door. It’s ridiculous. It’s also strange that her favorite television show is Jeopardy. I’m not sure if she enjoys all the special sounds the game board and the contestant’s buzzers make or if she just likes Alex Trebek. What I do know is that we should have named her Ariel because much like everyone’s favorite mermaid, her heart’s desire is to be a human.
That’s all the randomness I’ve got for today, except to also express gratitude for our veterans, including both of my late grandfathers and the Spouse’s late grandfather, whose bravery made and continue to make our freedoms in this country a reality. We are forever indebted to them for their service and sacrifice. May God heal our divisions and bless our land.
And, may this weekend bring you time with your favorite people {or favorite dogs} and lots of laughter and rest.
Leave a Reply